Activity Pacing for Fatigue Management

Activity Pacing, Fatigue Management, and Self-regulation Strategies as a Promising Approach for Managing Fatigue Symptoms and for Promoting Physical Activity in Adults Who Experience Fatigue

This project will focus on perceived fatigue as a barrier to physical activity participation and will explore if and how activity pacing, fatigue management, and self-regulation strategies can help to overcome this barrier in adults with chronic conditions who experience fatigue symptoms. The main aims are:

1. To demonstrate the differences and similarities on activity pacing, perceived fatigue, self-regulation, physical activity, and health-related quality of life in adults who experience fatigue by comparing individuals who have been through an activity pacing program or not.
2. To explore thoughts, experiences, needs, and perspectives on activity pacing of adults with fatigue and health professionals as well as any ideas for future development of an optimal intervention.

Participants will be invited to complete questionnaires on several variables (activity pacing, physical activity, fatigue, health-related quality of life, and self-regulation of physical activity). In addition, they will be invited to wear an Actigraph for 7 full days and they will also be invited to a focus group interview.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Fatigue; Physical Activity; Self-regulation; Chronic Condition; Activity Pacing

Detailed Description

Activity pacing is a fatigue management strategy that regulates energy and activity levels while maintaining or increasing engagement in physical activity. This approach is particularly beneficial for individuals with chronic conditions who experience significant fatigue as they often struggle with sustained physical activity participation due to recurring patterns of overexertion and subsequent fatigue or pain. Therefore, activity pacing strategies are important because individuals learn to manage fatigue symptoms, optimize physical activity behaviour, and accomplish a more stable activity pacing pattern, which will improve their health-related quality of life and well-being.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 54

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Ioulia Barakou, MSc; Phone Number: 07752464152; Email: ioulia.barakou@northumbria.ac.uk
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Florentina Hettinga, PhD; Phone Number: 0191 227 3989; Email: florentina.hettinga@northumbria.ac.uk

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Newcastle, United Kingdom
    • Recruiting
    • Northumbria University
    • Contact: Ioulia Barakou

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

Adults with chronic conditions who experience fatigue

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosed with a chronic condition
• Experience fatigue
• Ambulatory

Exclusion Criteria:

• Children
• Wheelchair users

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

3

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Adults who experience fatigue and have been through an activity pacing program; Adults with chronic conditions who experience fatigue recruited from Cresta Fatigue Clinic, Newcastle, UK
Adults who experience fatigue and have not been through an activity pacing program; Adults with chronic conditions who experience fatigue recruited from the waiting list of Cresta Fatigue Clinic, Newcastle, UK
Health professionals working on activity pacing; Health professionals who are working on Cresta Fatigue Clinic, Newcastle, UK

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Perceived fatigue	Fatigue Severity Scale is a 9-item questionnaire assessing the impact of perceived fatigue in adults with chronic disorders. FSS is valid and reliable to determine the impact of perceived fatigue among several clinical populations.	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days
Physical activity	Self-reported PA: IPAQ is a 7-item measure that assesses the intensity of physical activity and sitting time in their daily lives . It has been validated in adults with stroke .	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days
Engagement in Pacing and Perceived Risk of Overactivity	The Activity Pacing Questionnaire (APQ) is a 7-item measure assessing activity pacing and risk of overactivity. Reliability and construct validity have been investigated and the paper is in preparation.	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days
Perceived Fatigue	2)FACIT-F (version 4) is a 40-item questionnaire evaluating self-reported fatigue and its influence on everyday activities and function among adults with cancer and older people experiencing fatigue . FACIT-F is valid and reliable in several patient populations.	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days
Objective Physical Activity	Participants will be invited to wear an Actigraph for 7 full days.	7 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Self-regulation	Physical Activity Self-Regulation scale (PASR-12) is a 12-item measure assessing self-regulation for physical activity. PASR-12 has demonstrated validity and reliability in older adults.	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days
Health-related Quality of Life	RAND-12 health status inventory is a 12-item questionnaire that evaluates the health-related quality of life. Literature supports acceptable construct validity and test-retest reliability of the RAND-12 among clinical populations.	1 point in time measuring for the past 7 days

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Northumbria University
• Collaborators: Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 10, 2023
• Primary Completion (Estimated): October 30, 2023
• Study Completion (Estimated): March 1, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 5, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 14, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): August 21, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 21, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 14, 2023
• Last Verified: August 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: fatigue; self-regulation; chronic condition; physical activity behavior
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Disease Attributes; Fatigue; Chronic Disease
• Other Study ID Numbers: 313465

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No