Do pedometers increase physical activity in sedentary older women? A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness of a behavior change intervention (BCI) with or without a pedometer in increasing physical activity in sedentary older women. DESIGN Prospective randomized controlled trial. SETTING Primary care, City of Dundee, Scotland. PARTICIPANTS Two hundred four sedentary women aged 70 and older. INTERVENTIONS Six months of BCI, BCI plus pedometer (pedometer plus), or usual care. MEASUREMENTS PRIMARY OUTCOME change in daily activity counts measured by accelerometry. SECONDARY OUTCOMES Short Physical Performance Battery, health-related quality of life, depression and anxiety, falls, and National Health Service resource use. RESULTS One hundred seventy-nine of 204 (88%) women completed the 6-month trial. Withdrawals were highest from the BCI group (15/68) followed by the pedometer plus group (8/68) and then the control group (2/64). After adjustment for baseline differences, accelerometry counts increased significantly more in the BCI group at 3 months than in the control group (P = .002) and the pedometer plus group (P = .04). By 6 months, accelerometry counts in both intervention groups had fallen to levels that were no longer statistically significantly different from baseline. There were no significant changes in the secondary outcomes. CONCLUSION The BCI was effective in objectively increasing physical activity in sedentary older women. Provision of a pedometer yielded no additional benefit in physical activity, but may have motivated participants to remain in the trial.