Impact of a home-based resistance training program on health-related quality of life and sleep quality in children with inflammatory bowel disease in remission

Abstract

Abstract Purpose: The aim of our study was to investigate the effect of an exercise program on HRQoL and sleep quality in children with IBD in remission. Methods: A total of 42 paediatric IBD patients in remission (aged 15.3±2.08 years; 25 boys; disease type: Crohn's disease (CD) n=22, ulcerative colitis (UC) n=18, inflammatory bowel disease-unclassified (IBD-U) n=2) were recruited to participate in a 6-month-long home-based exercise program. Prior to starting the program, and after its’ completion, HRQoL was assessed using IMPACT III questionnaire, whilst sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire. Patients also wore a triaxial accelerometer for five consecutive days before and after the completion of the exercise program for objective assessment of physical activity (PA). Results: Study participants experienced no significant increase in IMPACT III score (from 147.56±2.73 to 149.59±2.77, p=0.106) following the completion of the exercise program. Prevalence of impaired sleep quality (PSQI>5) significantly decreased from 30.9% to 23.8% (p=0.027). At the baseline, participants’ time spent in light PA (LPA) positively correlated with IMPACT III score (coef. 0.398, p=0.013). Following the completion of the resistance training program, the changes in IMPACT III score correlated positively with time spent in moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) (coef. 0.329, p=0.047) and negatively with changes in PSQI score (coef. -0.493, p=0.001). Conclusion:The number of children with impaired sleep quality significantly decreased following the completion of a 6-month-long home-based resistance training program, while improvements in HRQoL scores did not reach a statistical difference. Further studies regarding the impact of structuralized exercise programs on HRQoL and sleep quality in children with IBD are warranted.