Background/Purpose: Metabolic syndrome increases the risk of osteoarthritis (OA). The accumulation of components of the metabolic syndrome is associated with a gradual increase in the risk of development and progression of knee OA. Physical activity may be a viable strategy to decrease the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Studies examining physical activity among persons with OA are limited by self-reported data and the definitions are varied. The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between objectively-measured physical activity and metabolic syndrome among a nationally representative sample of adults with OA.

Methods: Using cross-sectional data from the 2003–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, we identified 385 adults with OA who had physical activity measured with the Actigraph AM-7164 accelerometer worn over the right hip on an elasticized belt. Accelerometers provide a reliable and sensitive measure for the duration and intensity of bodily movement. As such, the activity counts derived from accelerometers were used to differentiate overall physical activity levels: 1) sedentary (<100 counts/min); 2) light physical activity (100 to 759 counts/min; 3) lifestyle (760 to 2019 counts/min); and 4) moderate to vigorous activity (≥2020 counts/min). Metabolic syndrome was defined using the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III standards. Logistic regression models estimated the relationship of quartile of daily minutes for each activity type to odds of metabolic syndrome adjusted for confounders and weighted for the complex survey design.

Results: Metabolic syndrome was present in 48.0% and of those, 11.2% met the physical activity guidelines of 150 minutes per week of moderate/vigorous activity. The proportion of sedentary time of total wear time, daily duration in light, lifestyle, or moderate to vigorous physical activity was associated with cluster components of metabolic syndrome. Relative to the lowest quartile of light activity, those in the highest quartile had reduced odds of metabolic syndrome (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) _{>296.3 versus  ≤212.3 minutes/day} : 0.43; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.23 to 0.83; aOR _{256.1-296.3 versus  ≤212.3 minutes/day} : 0.77; 95% CI: 0.30 to 1.97;aOR _{212.4-256.0 versus ≤212.3 minutes/day} : 1.43; 95% CI: 0.88 to 2.31  ; p-value for linear trend = 0.01).

Conclusion: Increased light physical activity was inversely associated with prevalence of metabolic syndrome among adults with OA. Effective interventions to encourage individuals with OA to increase light activity during daily living are warranted.

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ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/association-of-objectively-measured-physical-activity-and-metabolic-syndrome-among-adults-with-osteoarthritis-in-the-united-states/