Physical activity advice from general practitioners in Germany: findings from a cross-sectional population survey of individuals with chronic ischaemic heart disease (OptiCor study)

Objectives The current German treatment guideline for chronic ischaemic heart disease (IHD) recommends that general practitioners (GPs) deliver brief advice on physical activity (PA) to patients with IHD. Such advice consists of at least three elements (ie, 3As): (1) assessing the PA level, (2) advising on PA and (3) assisting with recommendations. This study examined the extent to which individuals with self-reported IHD in Germany reported the receipt of such advice.Design Cross-sectional population-based face-to-face survey (from June 2023 to August 2024).Setting Households across Germany.Participants 1004 individuals aged 35+ years with self-reported IHD and GP contact.Outcome measures Primary outcome: self-reported proportions of receipt of GP-delivered PA advice according to the 3As. Main secondary outcome: associations between person characteristics and the likelihood of receiving PA advice.Results Among individuals with self-reported IHD, 36.4% (95% CI 33.4% to 39.4%) received all 3As of PA advice, 42.1% (95% CI 39.1% to 45.2%) received one or two elements, 9.9% (95% CI 8.1% to 11.8%) received no advice at all and 3.8% (95% CI 2.7% to 5.1%) were advised to avoid PA (7.9% did not remember/refused to answer). Women (vs men) were more likely to receive no advice (OR=1.74, 95% CI 1.11% to 2.72%), while middle (vs younger) aged individuals (OR=0.46, 95% CI 0.22% to 0.99%), those with PA levels of 1-149 min/week (vs no PA; OR=0.16, 95% CI 0.08% to 0.31%) and of 150+ min/week (vs no PA; OR=0.13, 95% CI 0.07% to 0.23%) and those with higher (vs lower) education (OR=0.39, 95% CI 0.20% to 0.76%) were less likely to receive no advice. Individuals living in urban (vs rural) areas (OR=0.65, 95% CI 0.46% to 0.88%) and those with PA levels of 1-149 min/week (vs no PA; OR=0.59, 95% CI 0.37% to 0.95%) and of 150+ min/week (vs no PA; OR=0.55, 95% CI 0.36% to 0.84%) were less likely to receive only one or two (vs all) of the 3As. Of those who received at least one element of advice (n=788), 72.5% reported they were more active afterwards, with a higher proportion when all 3As (vs only some elements) were provided (86.8% vs 59.6%).Conclusions Only one-third of individuals with self-reported IHD in Germany received comprehensive PA advice. Specific person characteristics, such as female gender and lower education, were associated with lower proportions of received PA advice. Efforts are needed to improve GP-led PA guidance, particularly for underserved groups.Trial registration number German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS00031304).