Lifestyle Behaviors and Clinical Outcomes in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.

BACKGROUND

Lifestyle behaviors are not well-characterized in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).

OBJECTIVES

To assess the association between lifestyle behaviors and clinical outcomes in patients with IPF.

METHODS

A total of 34 IPF patients (median age 68 years) were assessed for daily sitting and weekly walking times using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire by in-person interview at baseline, and they were followed up for up to 40 months. Cox proportional hazard analysis was conducted for cardiorespiratory-related hospitalizations and mortality as outcomes.

RESULTS

Fifty percent of all patients were hospitalized, and 32% died during the follow-up period. Sitting and walking times were associated with hospitalizations and mortality in IPF. Compared to patients who reported a sitting time of <5 h/day, patients who sat 5 to <10 and ≥10 h/day experienced an increased risk of 2.4 and 5.8 (p trend = 0.036) for hospitalization and of 4.6 and 21.2 (p trend = 0.018) for mortality, respectively. Compared to patients walking <100 min/week, patients with a walking time of 100 to <150 and ≥150 min/week were associated with a 49 and 74% reduced risk for hospitalizations (p trend = 0.022) and a 62 and 86% reduced risk for mortality (p trend = 0.018), respectively. The risk for mortality was further reduced with a combination of shorter sitting and extended walking times.

CONCLUSIONS

Shorter daily sitting and longer weekly walking times were associated with reduced hospitalization and mortality risks in patients with IPF. These findings suggest a clinical importance of assessing lifestyle behaviors in a comprehensive evaluation and prognostication of IPF patients. The results underscore potential clinical benefits of reducing sedentary behaviors among IPF patients; however, this warrants further investigation.