Exercise Intervention Designed to Improve Strength and Dynamic Balance among Community-Dwelling Older Adults

2005 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 198-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ro DiBrezzo ◽  
Barbara B. Shadden ◽  
Blake H. Raybon ◽  
Melissa Powers
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Upper Extremity ◽  
Exercise Intervention ◽  
Dynamic Balance ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Balance Training ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Training Exercises ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Loss of balance and falling are critical concerns for older adults. Physical activity can improve balance and decrease the risk of falling. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a simple, low-cost exercise program for community-dwelling older adults. Sixteen senior adults were evaluated using the Senior Fitness Test for measures of functional strength, aerobic endurance, dynamic balance and agility, and flexibility. In addition, measures of height, weight, resting blood pressure, blood lipids, and cognitive function were obtained. Participants then attended a 10-week exercise class including stretching, strengthening, and balance-training exercises. At the completion of the program, significant improvements were observed in tests measuring dynamic balance and agility, lower and upper extremity strength, and upper extremity flexibility. The results indicate that exercise programs such as this are an effective, low-cost solution to improving health and factors that affect falling risk among older adults.

scholarly journals Perturbation-Based Balance Training Using Repeated Trips on a Walkway vs. Belt Accelerations on a Treadmill: A Cross-Over Randomised Controlled Trial in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Y. H. Song ◽  
Daina L. Sturnieks ◽  
Michael K. Davis ◽  
Stephen R. Lord ◽  
Yoshiro Okubo
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Ecological Validity ◽  
Dynamic Balance ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Balance Training ◽  
Step Length ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Margin Of Stability ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults ◽  
Treadmill Belt

Background: Walkway and treadmill induced trips have contrasting advantages, for instance walkway trips have high-ecological validity whereas belt accelerations on a treadmill have high-clinical feasibility for perturbation-based balance training (PBT). This study aimed to (i) compare adaptations to repeated overground trips with repeated treadmill belt accelerations in older adults and (ii) determine if adaptations to repeated treadmill belt accelerations can transfer to an actual trip on the walkway.Method: Thirty-eight healthy community-dwelling older adults underwent one session each of walkway and treadmill PBT in a randomised crossover design on a single day. For both conditions, 11 trips were induced to either leg in pseudo-random locations interspersed with 20 normal walking trials. Dynamic balance (e.g., margin of stability) and gait (e.g., step length) parameters from 3D motion capture were used to examine adaptations in the walkway and treadmill PBT and transfer of adaptation from treadmill PBT to a walkway trip.Results: No changes were observed in normal (no-trip) gait parameters in both training conditions, except for a small (0.9 cm) increase in minimum toe elevation during walkway walks (P < 0.01). An increase in the margin of stability and recovery step length was observed during walkway PBT (P < 0.05). During treadmill PBT, an increased MoS, step length and decreased trunk sway range were observed (P < 0.05). These adaptations to treadmill PBT did not transfer to a walkway trip.Conclusions: This study demonstrated that older adults could learn to improve dynamic stability by repeated exposure to walkway trips as well as treadmill belt accelerations. However, the adaptations to treadmill belt accelerations did not transfer to an actual trip. To enhance the utility of treadmill PBT for overground trip recovery performance, further development of treadmill PBT protocols is recommended to improve ecological authenticity.

Core Muscle Strengthening’s Improvement of Balance Performance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Pilot Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Kahle ◽  
Michael A. Tevald
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Balance Training ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Exercise Group ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Home Exercise ◽  
Balance Performance ◽  
Balance Test ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

To determine the effect of core muscle strengthening on balance in community-dwelling older adults, 24 healthy men and women between 65 and 85 years old were randomized to either exercise (EX;n= 12) or control (CON;n= 12) groups. The exercise group performed a core strengthening home exercise program thrice weekly for 6 wk. Core muscle (curl-up test), functional reach (FR) and Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) were assessed at baseline and follow-up. There were no group differences at baseline. At follow-up, EX exhibited significantly greater improvements in curl-up (Cohen’sd= 4.4), FR (1.3), and SEBT (>1.9 for all directions) than CON. The change in curl-up was significantly correlated with the change in FR (r= .44,p= .03) and SEBT (r> .61,p≤ .002). These results suggest that core strengthening should be part of a comprehensive balance-training program for older adults.

scholarly journals Promoting Generalized Learning in Balance Recovery Interventions

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 402
Author(s):  
Sara A. Harper ◽  
Anne Z. Beethe ◽  
Christopher J. Dakin ◽  
David A. E. Bolton
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
Balance Training ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Specific Training ◽  
Balance Recovery ◽  
Parallel Streams ◽  
Postural Perturbations ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Recent studies have shown balance recovery can be enhanced via task-specific training, referred to as perturbation-based balance training (PBT). These interventions rely on principles of motor learning where repeated exposure to task-relevant postural perturbations results in more effective compensatory balance responses. Evidence indicates that compensatory responses trained using PBT can be retained for many months and can lead to a reduction in falls in community-dwelling older adults. A notable shortcoming with PBT is that it does not transfer well to similar but contextually different scenarios (e.g., falling sideways versus a forward trip). Given that it is not feasible to train all conditions in which someone could fall, this limited transfer presents a conundrum; namely, how do we best use PBT to appropriately equip people to deal with the enormous variety of fall-inducing scenarios encountered in daily life? In this perspective article, we draw from fields of research that explore how general learning can be promoted. From this, we propose a series of methods, gleaned from parallel streams of research, to inform and hopefully optimize this emerging field where people receive training to specifically improve their balance reactions.

scholarly journals Cost-effectiveness of a Diet and Resistance Exercise Intervention in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: ProMuscle in Practice

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 792-802.e2
Author(s):  
Berber G. Dorhout ◽  
Annemien Haveman-Nies ◽  
Ellen J.I. van Dongen ◽  
Nick L.W. Wezenbeek ◽  
Esmée L. Doets ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cost Effectiveness ◽  
Resistance Exercise ◽  
Exercise Intervention ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

scholarly journals A 12-month incidence of exercise-related injuries in previously sedentary community-dwelling older adults following an exercise intervention

BMJ Open ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. e002831 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert M D Little ◽  
Donald H Paterson ◽  
David A Humphreys ◽  
Liza Stathokostas
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Exercise Intervention ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

scholarly journals Relationship Between Dynamic Balance Measures and Functional Performance in Community-Dwelling Elderly People

2010 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 748-760 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ankur Desai ◽  
Valerie Goodman ◽  
Naaz Kapadia ◽  
Barbara L. Shay ◽  
Tony Szturm
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Dynamic Balance ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Standing Balance ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Clinical Test ◽  
Balance Assessment ◽  
Test Protocol ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

BackgroundPoor balance control, mobility restrictions, and fall injuries are serious problems for many older adults.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to evaluate a new dynamic standing balance assessment test for identifying individuals at risk for falling in a group of community-dwelling older adults.DesignThis was a cross-sectional observational study of 72 community-dwelling older adults who were receiving rehabilitation in a geriatric day hospital.MethodA Dynamic Balance Assessment (DBA) test protocol was developed based on the concept of the Sensory Organization Test and the Clinical Test of Sensory Interaction and Balance. The DBA consists of 6 tasks performed on a normal floor surface and repeated on a sponge surface. A flexible pressure mat was used to record the foot's center of pressure (COP) on both surfaces, and loss of balance was recorded. Balance performance also was evaluated using the Berg Balance Scale, the Timed “Up & Go” Test, gait speed, and the Six-Minute Walk Test. Participants were classified as “fallers” or “nonfallers” based on a self-report.ResultsNo significant differences were noted between the faller group (n=47) and the nonfaller group (n=25) for demographic variables or medications. The DBA composite scores, which were derived from analysis of COP excursions of the 6 tasks performed on the sponge surface, were able to distinguish between fallers and nonfallers. Of the clinical tests, only the Timed “Up & Go” Test was able to differentiate between the faller and nonfaller groups.LimitationsA prospective study is needed to confirm the current findings and to expand testing to a larger and more diverse sample.ConclusionsThe findings indicate that analysis of the extent and amount of COP displacements during selected tasks and under different surface conditions is an appropriate method to assess dynamic standing balance controls and can discriminate between fallers and nonfallers among community-dwelling elderly people.

scholarly journals Remote, unsupervised functional motor task evaluation in older adults across the United States using the MindCrowd electronic cohort

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Hooyman ◽  
Joshua S. Talboom ◽  
Matthew D. DeBoth ◽  
Lee Ryan ◽  
Matt Huentelman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Upper Extremity ◽  
Motor Function ◽  
Motor Task ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Dominant Hand ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults ◽  
At Home

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the ability to evaluate motor function in older adults, as motor assessments typically require face-to-face interaction. This study tested whether motor function can be assessed at home. One hundred seventy-seven older adults nationwide (recruited through the MindCrowd electronic cohort) completed a brief functional upper-extremity assessment at home and unsupervised. Performance data were compared to data from an independent sample of community-dwelling older adults (N=250) assessed by an experimenter in-lab. The effect of age on performance was similar between the in-lab and at-home groups for both the dominant and non-dominant hand. Practice effects were also similar between the groups. Assessing upper-extremity motor function remotely is feasible and reliable in community-dwelling older adults. This test offers a practical solution in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and telehealth practice and other research involving remote or geographically isolated individuals.

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