Development of an Energy Expenditure Estimation Formula Associated with the Wheelchair Activity of Disabled People with a Spinal Cord Injury

Patients with a spinal cord injury (SCI) who have been using wheelchairs for a long time are prone to obesity due to decreased physical activity; this often develops into secondary complications, such as metabolic or cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, these patients should be provided with relevant information, such as their calorie consumption, to address issues related to obesity and encourage exercise. This study aimed to develop an estimation formula for the metabolic equivalent of task (MET) and energy expenditure (EE) based on the intensity of wheelchair driving in SCI patients. We analyzed the energy expenditure of 40 patients with SCI while driving the wheelchair at low, moderate, and high intensities on a treadmill using a portable gas analyzer. The MET and EE equations were calculated based on wheelchair speed, and the consistency between the estimated and the measured MET and EE values was then analyzed. Consequently, the estimated METs were 3.4, 4.6, and 6.0 at wheelchair driving speeds of 2.2 km/h, 3.5 km/h, and 5.1 km/h, respectively, and the measured MET was found to be equivalent to moderate and high-intensity physical activities. In addition, the estimated and measured values of the developed MET and EE equations exhibited high reliability based on the intra-class correlation coefficient of 0.958 (95% CI 0.939–.971, p = 0.000) with a limit of agreement from −3.29 to 2.84 kcal. The developed estimation formula can aid in predicting the calorie consumption related to the wheelchair activity of disabled people with SCI.