The Implications of Power Mobility on Body Weight in a Veteran Population
Background: The prevalence of obesity is increasing in the United States. A common concern among health care providers is that prescribing a power mobility device (PMD) may decrease physical activity and lead to obesity and increasing morbidity. This study analyzes the effect of PMD prescriptions over a 2-year period on body mass index (BMI) and body weight in a population of veterans both as a whole and in BMI/age subgroups.
Methods: Prosthetics department medical records of veterans who received PMDs for the first time between January 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012 were reviewed. Of 399 records reviewed, 185 veterans met criteria for data analysis. The primary outcome measure was the change in BMI and body weight from time 1 (date of PMD prescription) to time 2 (2 years later).
Results: There was a significant decrease in BMI and weight in the first 2 years after receiving a PMD prescription. However, age moderated the relationship between BMI and time.
Conclusions: PMD use does not seem to be associated with significant weight change. Further studies using control groups and assessing comorbidities are needed.
Limitations
The data were gathered from a predominantly male veteran population, potentially limiting generalizability. The health of any individual is determined by the interaction of factors of which body weight is just a single, isolated component. As such, the effect of powered mobility on body weight is not a direct reflection on the effect on overall health. Additionally, there are many factors that may affect an individual’s body weight, such as optimal management of medical comorbidities, which could not be controlled for in this study. Also, while these values can be compared with other veteran populations, this study had no true control group.
Conclusions
Based on the findings of this study with aforementioned limitations, PMD use does not seem to be associated with significant weight changes. Further studies using control groups and assessing comorbidities are needed.
