Comparison of Self-Reported Physical Activity between Survivors of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest and Patients with Myocardial Infarction without cardiac arrest: a case-control study.

Aims: To investigate whether out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survivors had lower levels of self-reported physical activity compared to a non-cardiac arrest control group with myocardial infarction (MI), and to explore if symptoms of anxiety, depression, kinesiophobia (fear of movement) and fatigue were associated with a low level of physical activity.
Methods: Predefined case-control sub-study within the international Targeted Hypothermia versus Targeted Normothermia after Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (TTM2) trial. OHCA survivors at 8 of 61 TTM2 sites in Sweden, Denmark and the United Kingdom were invited. Participants were matched 1:1 to MI controls. Both OHCA survivors and MI controls answered two questions on self-reported physical activity, categorized as a low, moderate, or high level of physical activity, and questionnaires on anxiety and depression symptoms, kinesiophobia, and fatigue 7 months after the cardiac event.
Results: Overall, 106 of 184 (58%) eligible OHCA survivors were included and matched to 91 MI controls. In total, 25% of OHCA survivors and 20% of MI controls reported a low level of physical activity, with no significant difference (p=0.13). Symptoms of kinesiophobia and fatigue were significantly associated with a low level of physical activity in both groups. OHCA survivors had significantly more kinesiophobia compared to MI controls (18% versus 9%, p=0.04), while levels of anxiety and depression symptoms and fatigue were similar.
Conclusion: OHCA survivors had similar levels of physical activity compared to matched MI controls. High level of kinesiophobia and fatigue were associated with a low level of physical activity in both groups.
(© The Author(s) 2025. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)