A DEDICATED AMPUTEE SPORTS PROGRAMME IMPROVES PHYSICAL FUNCTIONING AND SPORTS PARTICIPATION

OBJECTIVE: People with a lower-limb amputation often have a sedentary lifestyle and increasing physical activity is important to optimize their health and quality of life. To achieve this the Amputee Parateam programme was developed. Amputee Parateam is a sports programme that addresses important physical, environmental, and social barriers for sports participation. This programme was evaluated in terms of various aspects of physical functioning and health. DESIGN: Repeated measures design. PATIENTS: Thirteen participants with a lower-limb amputation, with a median age of 51 (interquartile range (IQR) 40–63). METHODS: Measurements were performed at T0 (baseline), T1 (after 6 weeks) and T2 (follow-up after 12 months). Outcome measures were walking ability, functional mobility, daily activity, health-related quality of life, and adherence to sports at follow-up. RESULTS: Walking ability and functional ability significantly improved between T0 and T1. Adherence to sports at follow-up was high, with 11/13 participants still practicing sports weekly. There were no significant changes in daily activity or health-related quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: The Amputee Parateam programme successfully improved walking ability and functional mobility and resulted in a high adherence to sports among the participants. However, these improvements in physical capacity did not lead to less sedentary behaviour in daily life. LAY ABSTRACT People with a lower-limb amputation often have a sedentary lifestyle. Increasing physical activity is important to optimize their health and quality of life. We developed the Amputee Parateam: a sports programme that addresses the most important barriers for sports participation. Thirteen people (median age 51) with a lower-limb amputation participated. They were evaluated before, during and after the programme. The participants showed significant improvements in walking ability and functional mobility as a result of the programme. Furthermore, sports participation increased, as 11/13 participants still practiced sports weekly 1 year after the start of the programme. However, daily physical activity and health-related quality of life did not improve. This study shows that the Amputee Parateam is successful for improving walking ability, functional mobility, and sports participation, but clinicians should be aware that these improvements do not lead to less sedentary behaviour in daily life.