AUTHOR=van der Kamp Mattienne R. , Nieuwdorp Bram W. , Thio Boony J. , Tabak Monique , Kamps Arvid W. A. , Hermens Hermie J. , Driessen Jean M. M. 

TITLE=Can the Childhood Physical Activity Questionnaire Be Used to Identify Physical Activity Levels in Children With Asthma?

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pediatrics

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pediatrics/articles/10.3389/fped.2021.726695

DOI=10.3389/fped.2021.726695

ISSN=2296-2360

ABSTRACT=Objective: Children with asthma who are physically active have a better quality of life, emphasizing the importance of activity monitoring and promotion in daily life. The validity of self-reported activity measurements has been questioned in pediatric populations. In this study, we aim to compare the physical activity questionnaire for children (PAQ-C) with objectively measured PA using accelerometry.
Design: In this comparison study the pooled dataset of two cross-sectional studies were used which prospectively home-monitored PA using the alternative self-report PAQ-C questionnaire as well as with the criterion standard accelerometry (Actigraph wGT3X-BT and GT1M). 
Participants: 90 children with pediatrician-diagnosed asthma (4-18y) participated in the study.
Main Outcome Measures: Correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the relation between the PAQ-C and accelerometer data. The predictive value of the PAQ-C in differentiating between achieving and failing the recommended daily level of moderate-to-vigorous activity (MVPA) was evaluated with Receiver Operator Characteristic (ROC) analysis. 
Results: The results showed weak to moderate correlations of the PAQ-C with the accelerometer data (r=0.29 – 0.47). A PAQ-C cut-off of 3.09 showed the best performance on predicting whether the recommended level of MVPA was achieved. With this cut-off, 21 of the 39 children that did achieve their daily MVPA level (53.8% sensitivity) and 33 of the 46 children that did fail their daily MVPA level (71.7% specificity) were correctly classified. A PAQ-C score of 3.5 revealed a negative predictive value of 100% for assessing inactivity. 
Conclusion: This study revealed a weak relations between the PAQ-C and PA assessed with accelerometry. However, a PAQ-C score of 3.5 or higher might be used as a low cost and easy to use PA screening tool for ruling out inactivity in a portion of the pediatric asthma population.