Is Anticipatory Postural Adjustments Focused Training Effective for Fall Prevention and Quality of Life in the Elderly?
Published: August 1, 2019 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2019/41809.13049
Hamed Arghavani, Vahid Zolaktaf, Shahram Lenjannejadian
1. PhD Candidate, Faculty of Physical Education, Department of Corrective Exercises, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.
2. Associated Professor, Faculty of Physical Education, Department of Corrective Exercises, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.
3. Assistant Professor, Faculty of Physical Education, Department of Corrective Exercises, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.
Correspondence
Dr. Vahid Zolaktaf,
Faculty of Physical Education, Department of Corrective Exercises, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.
E-mail: V.zolaktaf@spr.ui.ac.ir
Introduction: Two important problems of ageing include decreased Balance Confidence (BC) and consequently decreased Quality of Life (QOL). There is a relationship between BC and QOL, and that the elderly who have more fear of falling, have a significantly lower QOL.
Aim: To study the effects of anticipatory postural adjustments focused training that is a novel approach to balance rehabilitation, on Balance Confidence and Quality of Life of the elderly.
Materials and Methods: This study was an experiment with pre-test and post-test design, that was conducted in Aramesh Rehab Gym, Isfahan, Iran. The sample size included 40 elderly males with a history of falling. They were randomly allocated into Experimental Group (EG) (70.4±3.21 years) and Control Group (CG) (69.6±3.09 years). EG participated in a training program which provided different ways to catch a ball for eight weeks, and CG did not receive any training. Before and after the intervention, all participants completed the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale and the SF-36 questionnaire to evaluate BC and QOL, respectively. The Independent t-test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to analyse the data.
Results: Both the ABC scale mean score and the total mean score of QOL in the EG significantly increased compared to the CG in the post-test (p<0.05). Also, in the post-test, the EG noticeably improved in every QOL survey domain compared to the CG (p<0.05), except the mental health domain.
Conclusion: The findings appear to suggest that entertaining ball exercises that involve catching and throwing a ball in different conditions can improve the BC and the QOL, hence reducing the probability of falling in older people with records of a fall.
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