Programming Aquatic Therapy for POTS

World Health Organization Quality of Life - Brief (WHOQOL-BREF)

The WHOQOL-BREF is a 26-item questionnaire that will be completed digitally. It is scored by first assigning numerical values (1-5) to each response, with higher scores generally indicating a better quality of life. Then, raw domain scores are calculated by averaging the responses within each domain (Physical, Psychological, Social, and Environmental). Finally, these raw domain scores are transformed into scaled scores ranging from 0 to 100 by multiplying by 4. Higher scores on the 0-100 scale indicate a higher quality of life. The measure will be reported as a quality of life score.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention

The DePaul Symptom Questionnaire (Short Form) (DSQ-SF)

14-item-questionnaire which measures post-exertional malaise symptoms over the last 6 months. Each question requires two ratings, one for frequency (0 = none of the time and 4 = all of the time) and one for severity (0 = symptom not present and 4 = very severe). A frequency of at least 2 and a severity of at least 2 on any one of the 5 questions on the DSQ-SF subscale indicate that post exertional malaise is present. For each symptom, the frequency and severity scores are averaged, and then multiplied by 25 to create a composite score out of 100. The measure will be reported as a post exertional malaise score.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention.

Composite Autonomic Symptom Score-31

Measures neurodegenerative system symptoms through 31 patient-reported questions. Assessment is through six weighted domains: orthostatic intolerance \[10 points\]; vasomotor \[6 points\]; secretomotor \[7 points\]; gastrointestinal \[28 points\]; bladder \[9 points\] and pupillomotor \[15 points\]. A higher score indicates worse autonomic dysfunction. Simple yes or no questions are scored as 0 points for no and 1 point for yes. Questions about a specific site of symptoms or symptoms under specific circumstances are scored as 0 if not present and as 1 if present for each site or circumstance. All questions regarding the frequency of symptoms were scored as 0 points for rarely or never, 1 point for occasionally or sometimes, 2 points for frequently or "a lot of the time," and 3 points for almost always or constantly. All questions regarding the severity of symptoms were scored as 1 point for mild, 2 points for moderate, and 3 points for severe. The measure will be reported as a COMPASS score

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention.

Malmo POTS Scale (MAPS)

This 12-item questionnaire assesses the specific POTS symptom burden over the past 3 months. Each question uses a visual analog scale from 0-10, with a maximum score of 120. A score of 42 or higher is considered indicative of POTS. The measure will be reported as a MAPS score.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention

ADLS, IADLS, and Vestibular Questionnaire

This is a 26-item questionnaire that will be filled out digitally. 21 questions cover about to participate in occupations listed in the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework using a scale from 1-10, where 1 is unable to complete the task, 5 is able to complete task with moderate difficulty (noticeable symptoms and extra effort is required) 10 is no problems/symptoms completing the task. It also contains 5 vestibular related questions using a scale from 1-7, with 1 being not at all dizzy, 4 being moderately dizzy, and 7 being extremely dizzy. The measure will be reported as an AIVQ score.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention

Active Stand Test

The patient will begin laying down in a relaxed and comfortable position. Blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) are taken after 5 minutes. Next, the patient will be asked to stand promptly, and will have their BP and HR measured immediately. The therapist will note any comments like "feeling dizzy". The BP and HR will be taken again and documented after three minutes, and again after ten minutes of standing. If there is any event, such as severe dizziness, paleness, etc, the BP and HR will be taken and documented just before the patient sits down. The measure will be reported as the position, time, and the correlated heart rate and blood pressure.

Time frame: From enrollment until the end of treatment at 12 weeks

Single leg stance test

This test measures a person's ability to balance standing on one leg without assistance. The participant will stand on one leg with their hands on their hips while being timed. The test is repeated 3 times for each leg and averaged. The measure will be reported as time standing per leg.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of 12 weeks of aquatic occupational therapy intervention

Heart Rate

Heart rate (HR) will be measured on land while the participant is laying down, sitting up, and standing. HR in the water will be taken while seated and standing. An aquatic HR maximum and HR zones will be calculated for each participant. This measure will be reported as a land-based and aquatic HR maximum.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks

Borg's rate of perceived exertion scale

This scale is used to tell how tiring an activity feels. The scale ranges from 6 (no exertion at all), to 20 (maximal heaviness). This will be reported as the RPE score.

Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 weeks