Exercise, self‐efficacy, and mobility performance in overweight and obese older adults with knee osteoarthritis

• Published in: Arthritis and rheumatism Vol. 53; no. 5; pp. 659 - 665
• Main Authors: Focht, Brian C., Rejeski, W. Jack, Ambrosius, Walter T., Katula, Jeffrey A., Messier, Stephen P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 15.10.2005
• Subjects: Activities of Daily Living; Arthritis; Diet, Reducing; Efficacy beliefs; Exercise Therapy; Humans; Knee - physiopathology; Life Style; Middle Aged; Movement - physiology; Obesity - complications; Obesity - diet therapy; Osteoarthritis, Knee - complications; Osteoarthritis, Knee - diet therapy; Pain - physiopathology; Pain Measurement; Physical activity; Physical function; Single-Blind Method; Treatment Outcome; Weight Loss
• DOI: 10.1002/art.21466
• ISSN: 0004-3591

Objective To examine changes in mobility‐related self efficacy following exercise and dietary weight loss interventions in overweight and obese older adults with knee osteoarthritis (OA), and to determine if self efficacy and pain mediate the effects of the interventions on mobility task performance. Methods The Arthritis, Diet, and Activity Promotion Trial was an 18‐month, single‐blind, randomized, controlled trial comparing the effects of exercise alone, dietary weight loss alone, a combination of exercise plus dietary weight loss, and a healthy lifestyle control intervention in the treatment of 316 overweight or obese older adults with symptomatic knee OA. Participants completed measures of stair‐climb time and 6‐minute walk distance, self efficacy for completing each mobility task, and self‐reported pain at baseline, 6 months, and 18 months during the trial. Results Mixed model analyses of covariance of baseline adjusted change in the outcomes demonstrated that the exercise + dietary weight loss intervention produced greater improvements in mobility‐related self efficacy (P = 0.0035), stair climb (P = 0.0249) and 6‐minute walk performance (P = 0.00031), and pain (P = 0.09) when compared with the healthy lifestyle control intervention. Mediation analyses revealed that self efficacy and pain served as partial mediators of the beneficial effect of exercise + dietary weight loss on stair‐climb time. Conclusion Exercise + dietary weight loss results in improved mobility‐related self efficacy; changes in these task‐specific control beliefs and self‐reported pain serve as independent partial mediators of the beneficial effect of exercise + dietary weight loss on stair‐climb performance.