Acceptability and use of waist-worn physical activity monitors in Jamaican adolescents: lessons from the field

• Published in: BMC research notes 2023-01, Vol.16 (1), p.3-3, Article 3
• Main Authors: Smith, Joanne A, Christie, Sara-Lou, Rockette-Wagner, Bonny, Wilson, Lorraine, Govia, Ishtar O, Facey, Keri-Ann, Tulloch-Reid, Marshall K
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accelerometers; Accelerometry; Adolescent; Adolescents; Analysis; Biosensors; Diaries; Exercise; Feasibility studies; Female; Fitness Trackers; GDAR; Health aspects; Health behavior; Humans; Jamaica; Jamaican adolescents; Male; Physical activity; Physiological aspects; Questionnaires; Research Note; Schools; Sleep; Social aspects; Software; Students; Swimming; Teenagers; Youth
• ISSN: 1756-0500; 1756-0500
• DOI: 10.1186/s13104-022-06266-y

We report our experience with a validated waist-worn activity monitor in Jamaican adolescents attending urban high schools. Seventy-nine adolescents from the Global Diet and Activity Research (GDAR) study, recruited from 5 urban Jamaican high schools (two coeducational (n = 37), two all-female schools (n = 32) and one all-boys school (n = 10)) were asked to wear Actigraph wGT3X-BT accelerometers for 7 days (24-h), removing the device only when bathing or swimming. They also logged wake up and bed times in an activity diary. Accelerometry was considered valid if at least 4 days with ≥ 10-h monitor wear were recorded. Validity was compared by adolescent demographic and school characteristics. We also reviewed the students' written feedback on objective physical activity measurement. Participants, 80.5% female, had a mean age of 15.5 ± 0.8 years with 60% attending schools in low-income communities. Accelerometer return rates were > 98% with 84% providing valid data. Validity did not vary by age group, sex and school setting. While participants were excited about participating in the accelerometer sub-study, commonly reported challenges included monitor discomfort during sleep and maintaining the study diary. Objective measurement of physical activity using 24-h waist-worn accelerometers is feasible and acceptable in Jamaican adolescents.