Effects of an exercise and sport intervention among refugees living in a Greek refugee camp on mental health, physical fitness and cardiovascular risk markers: study protocol for the SALEEM pragmatic randomized controlled trial

Trials

Roland von Känel¹  Ioannis D. Morres²  Yannis Theodorakis²  Alexandros Panagos²  Karim Ramadan²  Konstantinia Filippou²  Elsa Havas²  Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis²  Markus Gerber³  Harald Seelig³  Sebastian Ludyga³  Flora Colledge³  Uwe Pühse³  Florian Knappe³  Dominique de Quervain⁴  Marianne Meier⁵ 

[1] Department of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Thessaly, Volos, Greece;Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, University of Basel, Grosse Allee 6, CH-4052, Basel, Switzerland;Division of Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland;Interdisciplinary Center for Gender Studies, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland;

关键词: Asylum seekers;    Cardiovascular risk;    Exercise;    Fitness;    Greece;    Mental health;    Physical activity;    Post-traumatic stress disorders;    Randomized controlled trial;    Refugees;    Sport;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13063-021-05808-2

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundDue to ongoing political and social conflicts, the number of international refugees has been increasing. Refugees are exposed to severe mental and physical strain, as well as traumatic experiences during their flight. Therefore, the risk of psychiatric disorders is markedly increased among international refugees. International organizations have criticized the lack of early interventions as a key problem, because untreated mental disorders are often difficult to cure at a later stage. Today, exercise and sport have been successfully employed to treat a wide range of psychiatric disorders. With patients with post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD), very limited empirical evidence exists, and studies carried out with international refugees are nearly non-existent.MethodsWe intend to implement a pragmatic randomized controlled trial (RCT) with an exercise and sport intervention group (n = 68, 50% women) and a wait-list control group (n = 68, 50% women) in the Koutsochero refugee camp, located close to the city of Larissa (Greece). During the RCT, exercise and sport will be offered five times per week (60 min/session) for 10 weeks. Participants will be asked to participate in at least two sessions per week. The programme is developed according to the participants’ needs and preferences and they will be able to choose between a range of activities. PTSD symptoms will serve as primary outcome, and several secondary outcomes will be assessed. Qualitative data collection methods will be used to gain a more in-depth appraisal of the participants’ perception of the intervention programme. In the second year of study, the programme will be opened to all camp residents. A strategy will be developed how the programme can be continued after the end of the funding period, and how the programme can be scaled up beyond the borders of the Koutsochero camp.DiscussionBy moving towards the primary prevention of chronic physical conditions and psychiatric disorders, a relevant contribution can be done to enhance the quality and quantity of life of refugee camp residents in Greece. Our findings may also strengthen the evidence for exercise as medicine as a holistic care option in refugee camps, by helping camp residents to adopt and maintain a physically active lifestyle.Trial registrationThe study was registered prospectively on the 8 February 2021 with ISRCTN https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN16291983

【 授权许可】

CC BY