Validation of the human activity profile in HIV-positive individuals on HAART

Objectives: This study tested the validity of the Human Activity Profile (HAP) in an HIV-positive population receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The HAP is a 94-item questionnaire for estimating functional capacity based on estimated metabolic equivalents for activities of daily living. Methods: Twenty-six HIV-positive participants (24 male, 2 female; age 46.0 ± 9.3 years) receiving HAART completed the HAP and an exercise protocol (Balke treadmill test). The HAP yields a maximal activity score (MAS) and adjusted activity score (AAS; MAS minus activities no longer performed). Twelve participants also completed another nonexercise questionnaire (NEx). Results: Mean maximal oxygen uptake values (VO_2max) were normally distributed, similar to non-HIV-positive normative data (37.73 ± 6.95 mL O₂•kg^-1•min^-1) and poorly correlated with MAS and AAS (r = 0.27 and ρ = 0.32, respectively), possibly due to a ceiling effect. Estimated VO_2max from the NEx was not significantly different than measured VO_2max and was highly correlated (r = 0.82). Conclusions: The HAP is not a valid indicator of functional capacity for HIV-positive patients on HAART. The lack of functional impairment suggests that, in the absence of other clinically relevant limitations, HIV-positive individuals on HAART may benefit from exercise prescriptions developed similarly for non-HIV-positive individuals, based on the NEx or submaximal testing protocols, without requiring adaptive strategies.