Varsha Athreya
Current Organizations / Institutes
The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article
Research Subjects
Research Interests
Varsha Athreya has a total of 4 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:
- Ashley N. Collimore-Doherty
Department of Physical Therapy, Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
1 shared publication - Ellen N. Sutter
Department of Physical Therapy, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
1 shared publication - Jana Marie Iverson
Department of Physical Therapy, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
1 shared publication - Simoni Mishra
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
1 shared publication
Latest Publications
- Open Access
Quantifying Physical Activity in Toddlers with Down Syndrome with Wearable Sensors During a Home-Based Mobility Intervention
Background: Quantifying movement during early mobility interventions is important for evaluating intervention participation and progression in toddlers with Down syndrome (DS), but behavioral video coding is time and labor-intensive. This study established and evaluated an activity count cutpoint for distinguishing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary-to-light physical activity (SLPA) in toddlers with DS during a home-based mobility intervention using a wearable accelerometer integrated into a body-weight support harness system. Methods: Video recordings behaviorally coded for MVPA and SLPA were synchronized with accelerometer activity counts binned in 5 s epochs. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to determine both group-derived and participant-specific activity count cutpoints. Results: The optimal group-derived cutpoint was 141 activity counts per 5 s, demonstrating strong classification performance (AUC = 0.903), with 94.4% sensitivity, 70.2% specificity, and an overall classification accuracy of 79.2%. Participant-specific cutpoints resulted in only minimal improvements in classification performance. Conclusions: These findings suggest that using individualized cutpoints may not be necessary for classifying MVPA in toddlers with DS during this intervention, though replication in a larger sample is warranted. A standardized activity count cutpoint may provide a practical approach for objectively monitoring activity during home-based mobility interventions.
Open AccessQuantifying Physical Activity in Toddlers with Down Syndrome with Wearable Sensors During a Home-Based Mobility Intervention
Background: Quantifying movement during early mobility interventions is important for evaluating intervention participation and progression in toddlers with Down syndrome (DS), but behavioral video coding is time and labor-intensive. This study established and evaluated an activity count cutpoint for distinguishing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary-to-light physical activity (SLPA) in toddlers with DS during a home-based mobility intervention using a wearable accelerometer integrated into a body-weight support harness system. Methods: Video recordings behaviorally coded for MVPA and SLPA were synchronized with accelerometer activity counts binned in 5 s epochs. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to determine both group-derived and participant-specific activity count cutpoints. Results: The optimal group-derived cutpoint was 141 activity counts per 5 s, demonstrating strong classification performance (AUC = 0.903), with 94.4% sensitivity, 70.2% specificity, and an overall classification accuracy of 79.2%. Participant-specific cutpoints resulted in only minimal improvements in classification performance. Conclusions: These findings suggest that using individualized cutpoints may not be necessary for classifying MVPA in toddlers with DS during this intervention, though replication in a larger sample is warranted. A standardized activity count cutpoint may provide a practical approach for objectively monitoring activity during home-based mobility interventions.