biostudies-literatureDelgado-Ortiz LSocietat Catalana de PneumologiaInnovative Medicines InitiativeInstituto de Salud Carlos IIISociedad Española de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica00673-2023https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC10910309biostudies-literatureUnknown10(2)<h4>Introduction</h4>The clinical validity of real-world walking cadence in people with COPD is unsettled. Our objective was to assess the levels, variability and association with clinically relevant COPD characteristics and outcomes of real-world walking cadence.<h4>Methods</h4>We assessed walking cadence (steps per minute during walking bouts longer than 10 s) from 7 days' accelerometer data in 593 individuals with COPD from five European countries, and clinical and functional characteristics from validated questionnaires and standardised tests. Severe exacerbations during a 12-month follow-up were recorded from patient reports and medical registries.<h4>Results</h4>Participants were mostly male (80%) and had mean±sd age of 68±8 years, post-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV₁) of 57±19% predicted and walked 6880±3926 steps·day^-1. Mean walking cadence was 88±9 steps·min^-1, followed a normal distribution and was highly stable within-person (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.92, 95% CI 0.90-0.93). After adjusting for age, sex, height and number of walking bouts in fractional polynomial or linear regressions, walking cadence was positively associated with FEV_1, 6-min walk distance, physical activity (steps·day^-1, time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, vector magnitude units, walking time, intensity during locomotion), physical activity experience and health-related quality of life and negatively associated with breathlessness and depression (all p<0.05). These associations remained after further adjustment for daily steps. In negative binomial regression adjusted for multiple confounders, walking cadence related to lower number of severe exacerbations during follow-up (incidence rate ratio 0.94 per step·min^-1, 95% CI 0.91-0.99, p=0.009).<h4>Conclusions</h4>Higher real-world walking cadence is associated with better COPD status and lower severe exacerbations risk, which makes it attractive as a future prognostic marker and clinical outcome.ERJ open researchReal-world walking cadence in people with COPD.PMC10910309115011FI21/00113PI11/ 01283820820201/2011147/2011Ajuts al millor projecte en fisioteràpia respiratPI14/0419Karlsson NArbillaga-Etxarri ARodriguez Chiaradia DADemeyer HBuekers JPolkey MIBalcells EHopkinson NSTroosters TRabinovich RAGarcia-Aymerich JGimeno-Santos Ede Jong CRodriguez-Roisin RPalmerini LToran-Montserrat PFrei AVogiatzis ILouvaris ZDelgado-Ortiz LWatz HRanciati SPuhan MAfalseReal-world walking cadence in people with COPD.<h4>Introduction</h4>The clinical validity of real-world walking cadence in people with COPD is unsettled. Our objective was to assess the levels, variability and association with clinically relevant COPD characteristics and outcomes of real-world walking cadence.<h4>Methods</h4>We assessed walking cadence (steps per minute during walking bouts longer than 10 s) from 7 days' accelerometer data in 593 individuals with COPD from five European countries, and clinical and functional characteristics from validated questionnaires and standardised tests. Severe exacerbations during a 12-month follow-up were recorded from patient reports and medical registries.<h4>Results</h4>Participants were mostly male (80%) and had mean±sd age of 68±8 years, post-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV₁) of 57±19% predicted and walked 6880±3926 steps·day^-1. Mean walking cadence was 88±9 steps·min^-1, followed a normal distribution and was highly stable within-person (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.92, 95% CI 0.90-0.93). After adjusting for age, sex, height and number of walking bouts in fractional polynomial or linear regressions, walking cadence was positively associated with FEV_1, 6-min walk distance, physical activity (steps·day^-1, time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, vector magnitude units, walking time, intensity during locomotion), physical activity experience and health-related quality of life and negatively associated with breathlessness and depression (all p<0.05). These associations remained after further adjustment for daily steps. In negative binomial regression adjusted for multiple confounders, walking cadence related to lower number of severe exacerbations during follow-up (incidence rate ratio 0.94 per step·min^-1, 95% CI 0.91-0.99, p=0.009).<h4>Conclusions</h4>Higher real-world walking cadence is associated with better COPD status and lower severe exacerbations risk, which makes it attractive as a future prognostic marker and clinical outcome.2024-01-01T00:00:00Z2024 Mar2026-06-09T07:02:07.012Z2026-06-09T03:12:18.768ZS-EPMC109103093844465610.1183/23120541.00673-2023