The impact of physical activity on quality of life in youth with visual impairments

Youth with visual impairments (YVI) do not participate in adequate daily physical activity, which can adversely impact their health indices, fitness, and overall quality of life (QoL). However, little is known about the impact of physical activity on QoL in YVI. This study examined the effect of a sports camp on QoL in YVI. Participants included 49 YVI 9 to 18 years. Thirty-three participants attended a week-long sports camp and 16 participants served as controls. Participants completed pre- and post-tests using the VISION-QL and Pediatric Quality-of-Life Inventory (PedsQL™) surveys. To provide further context, two focus groups were conducted from the sports camp participants. There were no significant differences between the post-test groups, although the pre-test scores did exhibit significance in 7 of 10 domains significantly different between groups. In addition, significantly higher scores were found in the intervention group for the education and social subscales. Considering many YVI attending the sports camp had previous experiences at sports camps, the benefits of physical activity were likely illustrated more in the comparison of the pre-tests rather than across the intervention period. These findings indicate the importance of regular physical activity upon QoL in YVI.