CO-RELATION AMONG LEISURE-TIME PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE IN PHYSICAL THERAPY STUDENTS

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Physical inactivity has become a global burden that leads to adverse health conditions in particular obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Moreover, the modern generation tends to have a sedentary lifestyle because of the burden and increasing usage of technologies including cell phones, laptops, or gaming gadgets. Therefore, students lack Physical Activity (PA) even in their leisure-time due to fatigue and a decrease in Quality of Life (QoL)

METHODOLOGY

A cross-sectional survey was conducted using convenience sampling technique among physical therapy students. Godin-Leisure Time Questionnaire and World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument (WHO HRQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used to collect data and sent to participants via email or WhatsApp groups.

RESULTS

A total number of 384 physical therapy students participated in the study with 104 (27%) males and 280 females (73%) respectively. The survey showed 74% of individual’s active followed by 19.2% moderately active while only 1.4% sedentary. An 81.1±11.4 average was attained on the HRQoL that suggested individuals have a good quality of life. Besides, no significant association (p=0.156) between leisure-time activity and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of physical therapy students was found.

CONCLUSION

It was concluded that the majority of students were active in performing moderate PA followed by good QoL. Moreover, no significant association between leisure-time activity and HRQoL of physical therapy students was found therefore, large-scale multicenter trials should be conducted to evaluate the factors related to PA and QoL in young individuals considering standardized assessments to have reliable outcomes.