Promotion of Exercise Behavior Among Rural-Residing African-Americans With Multiple Sclerosis
University of Illinois at Chicago
Summary
The proposed project involves a high-quality randomized controlled (RCT) design that examines the effects of a remotely-delivered, racially-tailored exercise training program for immediate and sustained improvement in walking dysfunction, symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among African-Americans with MS residing in rural environments. The primary analysis will test the hypothesis that those who are randomly assigned into the intervention condition (i.e., exercise training) will demonstrate (a) improvements in outcomes from baseline that (b) are sustained over 4-months of follow-up compared with those in the control condition (i.e., stretching).
Description
There is a lack of evidence from high-quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of exercise training for African-Americans with multiple sclerosis (MS), as only 1.7% of participants in physical activity and exercise research involving persons with MS identify as African-American. The population of African-Americans with MS deserves equal and focal research that addresses the unique challenges of MS in the African-American rural residing community. We uniquely address this population with a highly-developed and refined exercise training program that is racially-tailored for the target populat…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * English as primary language * Identify as African-American or Black * Age of 18 years or older * Diagnosis of MS * Relapse free in the past 30 days * Internet and email access * Willingness to complete the outcome questionnaires * Willingness to undergo randomization * Insufficient physical activity (not meeting current physical activity guidelines based on GLTEQ) * Mild-moderate ambulatory disability (MSWS-12 score between 25-49 \& PDDS score between 2-4) Exclusion Criteria: * Individuals not meeting above inclusion criteria * Individuals with moderate to high risk fo…
Interventions
- BehavioralGuidelines for Exercise in Multiple Sclerosis (GEMS)
Remotely-coached/guided, home-based program delivered using telerehabilitation focusing on aerobic fitness and muscle strength as a mode of training.
- BehavioralFLEX Stretching and Toning Program
Remotely-coached/guided, home-based program delivered using telerehabilitation focusing on stretching and range of motion as the mode of training.
Location
- University of Illinois at ChicagoChicago, Illinois