Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) enables the real-time capture of health-related behaviours, their situational contexts, and associated subjective experiences. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of an EMA targeting physical and eating behaviours, optimise its protocol, and provide recommendations for future large-scale EMA data collections. The study involved 52 participants (age 31±9 years, 56% females) from Czechia, France, Germany, and Ireland completing a 9-day free-living EMA protocol using the HealthReact platform connected to a Fitbit tracker. The EMA protocol included time-based (7/day), event-based (up to 10/day), and self-initiated surveys, each containing 8 to 17 items assessing physical and eating behaviours and related contextual factors such as affective states, location, and company. Qualitative insights were gathered from post-EMA feedback interviews. Compliance was low (median 49%), particularly for event-based surveys (median 34%), and declined over time. Many participants were unable or unwilling to complete surveys in certain contexts (e.g., when with family), faced interference with their daily schedules, and encountered occasional technical issues, suggesting the need for thorough initial training, an individualised protocol, and systematic compliance monitoring. The number of event-based surveys was less than desired for the study, with a median of 2.4/day for sedentary events, when 4 were targeted, and 0.9/day for walking events, when 3 were targeted. Conducting simulations using participants' Fitbit data allowed for optimising the triggering rules, achieving the desired median number of sedentary and walking surveys (3.9/day for both) in similar populations. Self-initiated reports of meals and drinks yielded more reports than those prompted in time-based and event-based EMA surveys, suggesting that self-initiated surveys might better reflect actual eating behaviours. This study highlights the importance of assessing feasibility and optimising EMA protocols to enhance subsequent compliance and data quality. Conducting pre-tests to refine protocols and procedures, including simulations using participants' activity data for optimal event-based triggering rules, is crucial for successful large-scale data collection in EMA studies of physical and eating behaviours.

• MeSH
• cvičení * MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• okamžité posouzení v přirozeném prostředí * MeSH
• průzkumy a dotazníky MeSH
• sběr dat * metody   MeSH
• stravovací zvyklosti * MeSH
• studie proveditelnosti MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH

BACKGROUND: Physical activity is pivotal in managing heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, and walking integrated into daily life is an especially suitable form of physical activity. This study aimed to determine whether a 6-month lifestyle walking intervention combining self-monitoring and regular telephone counseling improves functional capacity assessed by the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) in patients with stable heart failure with reduced ejection fraction compared with usual care. METHODS: The WATCHFUL trial (Pedometer-Based Walking Intervention in Patients With Chronic Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction) was a 6-month multicenter, parallel-group randomized controlled trial recruiting patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction from 6 cardiovascular centers in the Czech Republic. Eligible participants were ≥18 years of age, had left ventricular ejection fraction <40%, and had New York Heart Association class II or III symptoms on guidelines-recommended medication. Individuals exceeding 450 meters on the baseline 6MWT were excluded. Patients in the intervention group were equipped with a Garmin vívofit activity tracker and received monthly telephone counseling from research nurses who encouraged them to use behavior change techniques such as self-monitoring, goal-setting, and action planning to increase their daily step count. The patients in the control group continued usual care. The primary outcome was the between-group difference in the distance walked during the 6MWT at 6 months. Secondary outcomes included daily step count and minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity as measured by the hip-worn Actigraph wGT3X-BT accelerometer, NT-proBNP (N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein biomarkers, ejection fraction, anthropometric measures, depression score, self-efficacy, quality of life, and survival risk score. The primary analysis was conducted by intention to treat. RESULTS: Of 218 screened patients, 202 were randomized (mean age, 65 years; 22.8% female; 90.6% New York Heart Association class II; median left ventricular ejection fraction, 32.5%; median 6MWT, 385 meters; average 5071 steps/day; average 10.9 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day). At 6 months, no between-group differences were detected in the 6MWT (mean 7.4 meters [95% CI, -8.0 to 22.7]; P=0.345, n=186). The intervention group increased their average daily step count by 1420 (95% CI, 749 to 2091) and daily minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity by 8.2 (95% CI, 3.0 to 13.3) over the control group. No between-group differences were detected for any other secondary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Whereas the lifestyle intervention in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction improved daily steps by about 25%, it failed to demonstrate a corresponding improvement in functional capacity. Further research is needed to understand the lack of association between increased physical activity and functional outcomes. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT03041610.

• Klíčová slova
• behavior, cardiac rehabilitation, counseling, exercise, fitness trackers, walk test, walking,
• MeSH
• chůze MeSH
• dysfunkce levé srdeční komory * MeSH
• funkce levé komory srdeční MeSH
• kvalita života MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• srdeční selhání * terapie   farmakoterapie   MeSH
• tepový objem MeSH
• životní styl MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• multicentrická studie MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• randomizované kontrolované studie MeSH