Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40354640›Full record

Observational studyJMIR aging2025

Identifying Optimal Wearable Devices for Monitoring Mobility in Hospitalized Older Adults: Feasibility, Acceptability, and Validity Study.

Paulo Nascimento, Renata Kirkwood, Lauren E Griffith, Mylinh Duong, Cody Cooper, Yujiao Hao, Rong Zheng, Samir Raza, Marla Beauchamp

Abstract readObservational StudyValidation Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in JMIR aging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Paulo NascimentoSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4L6, Canada, 1 (905) 525-9140.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4900-390X
Renata KirkwoodSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4L6, Canada, 1 (905) 525-9140.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8320-3342
Lauren E GriffithDepartment of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2794-9692
Mylinh DuongPopulation Health Research Institute, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9197-2547
Cody CooperSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4L6, Canada, 1 (905) 525-9140.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-6746-7362
Yujiao HaoDepartment of Computing and Software, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0801-2674
Rong ZhengDepartment of Computing and Software, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4070-075X
Samir RazaDepartment of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0005-3387-9706
Marla BeauchampSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4L6, Canada, 1 (905) 525-9140.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2843-388X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Hospitalized, frail older adults have an increased risk of developing hospital-acquired disability associated with hospital practices of restricted physical activity and immobilization. The use of activity tracking wearable devices may allow identification and prevention of mobility decline, reducing hospital-acquired disability. Objective: This study aimed to identify the optimal wearable device and wear location for monitoring mobility in older hospitalized patients. Specific objectives included (1) comparison of the feasibility and acceptability of ActiGraph wGT3X-BT (ActiGraph LLC), MOX1 (Maastricht Instruments), MetaMotionC (mBientLab), and Fitbit Versa (Google) for continuous mobility monitoring and (2) determination of the concurrent validity of the selected device for detecting body posture and step count. Methods: Participants were recruited for this observational study in the acute medical care unit of an academic hospital in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Eligible patients were aged 60 years and older, able to undertake the mobility protocol, and had an anticipated length of stay greater than 4 days. The study was divided into 2 experiments. Experiment 1 evaluated the feasibility of 4 wearable devices and validated the derived data for body posture and step count. Experiment 2 involved a mobility assessment session and a 24-hour monitoring and feasibility period with the selected device from experiment 1. Results: The ActiGraph wGT3X-BT emerged as the most feasible device, demonstrating superior usability, data acquisition, and management. The thigh-worn ActiGraph accurately detected sedentary behavior, while the ankle-worn device provided detailed information on step counts and body postures. Bland-Altman plots and intraclass correlation coefficients indicated that the ankle-worn ActiGraph showed excellent reliability for step counting, with minimal bias and narrow limits of agreement. Patients expressed a high willingness to wear a continuous mobility tracking device at the hospital and at home. Conclusions: Thigh- and ankle-worn ActiGraph are optimal for assessing and monitoring mobility in older hospitalized patients. Challenges such as discomfort and device removal observed during the 24-hour monitoring period highlight areas for future studies. Overall, our findings support the integration of wearable technology in hospital settings to enhance mobility monitoring and early intervention strategies. Further research is warranted to evaluate the long-term use of wearable data for predicting health outcomes post hospitalization and informing clinical decision-making to promote early mobility.

Indexed as

Wearable Electronic DevicesAgedAged, 80 and overFeasibility StudiesFemaleFrail ElderlyHospitalizationHumansMaleMiddle AgedMonitoring, PhysiologicOntarioReproducibility of ResultsacceptabilityagingexercisefeasibilityFitbitgeriatricgerontologyhospitalhospital-acquired disabilityinpatientmHealthmobile healthmobilityolder adultsphysical activityphysical performanceposturewalkwearable

Identifiers

PMID40354640
PMCPMC12088621

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.