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Santos PC1,2,3, Santos CV1, Mota J2, Lopes S1, Mesquita C1,3
1Health School of Polytechnic Institute of Porto, Department of Physiotherapy, Porto, Portugal, 2Faculty of Sports, University of Porto, Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Porto, Portugal, 3Health School of Polytechnic Institute of Porto, Center for Rehabilitation Research, Porto, Portugal
Background: The risk of fall increases with age due to neuromusculoskeletal and cognitive changes due aging. The effects of physical exercise have been proven to reduce the risk of fall. However, they can be exponentiated when performed in a dual-task with a cognitive task.
Purpose: To evaluate the effects of the dual-task OTAGO exercise program on the risk of fall in older adults.
Methods: A quasi-experimental study of community intervention with 36 subjects was equally divided into three groups (n = 12). The control group (GT) had no intervention, one of the experimental groups was subjected to the OTAGO exercise program (GEO) and the other to the OTAGO program plus dual-task cognitive exercises (GEODT). Participants were assessed before (M0) and after the intervention (M1) with the 10 Meter Walking Test (10MWT), Timed Up and Go (TUG), Sit to Stand Test (STS), The Four-Stage Balance Test (Four-Stage) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCa). To analyze the differences of the groups in M0 and M1, the Anova test, that was used for quantitative variables and the Chi-Square and Fisher tests that were used for qualitative variables. For the intragroup differences, the T-test for matched samples was used in the quantitative variables and the McNemar test was used in the qualitative variables.
Results: The groups are comparable in M0. In M1 the experimental groups were significantly different from GC in all variables [10 MWT (GEODT: p = 0.003; GEO: p = 0.015); 10 evocative MWT (GEODT: p 0.001; GEO: p = 0.001); STS (GEODT: p 0.001; GEO: p 0.001)]. In the TUG and MoCa variables only differences of the GEODT were observed [TUG: p = 0.030; MoCA: p = 0.0015] for the other two groups; in MoCA the GEODT increased significantly more than the GEO (p = 0.005) and GC (p = 0.003). In the Four-Stage variable, the proportion of individuals at risk of falling in the experimental groups (GEODT: 33.3%; GEO: 41.7%) was considerably lower than the CG (83.3%).
Conclusion(s): Both OTAGO exercise program and dual-task OTAGO program reduce the risk of falling in the older adult. However, the second one presents more significant results in the cognitive test than the OTAGO exercise program applied alone.
Implications: The fall risk is a multifatorial problem and it is necessary approching this problem in a global way.
The integration of the dual task in exercise programs is important for physiotherapists to promote health in older adults.
Keywords: Fall risk, dual-task, OTAGO exercise programme
Funding acknowledgements: This study was not funded.
Purpose: To evaluate the effects of the dual-task OTAGO exercise program on the risk of fall in older adults.
Methods: A quasi-experimental study of community intervention with 36 subjects was equally divided into three groups (n = 12). The control group (GT) had no intervention, one of the experimental groups was subjected to the OTAGO exercise program (GEO) and the other to the OTAGO program plus dual-task cognitive exercises (GEODT). Participants were assessed before (M0) and after the intervention (M1) with the 10 Meter Walking Test (10MWT), Timed Up and Go (TUG), Sit to Stand Test (STS), The Four-Stage Balance Test (Four-Stage) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCa). To analyze the differences of the groups in M0 and M1, the Anova test, that was used for quantitative variables and the Chi-Square and Fisher tests that were used for qualitative variables. For the intragroup differences, the T-test for matched samples was used in the quantitative variables and the McNemar test was used in the qualitative variables.
Results: The groups are comparable in M0. In M1 the experimental groups were significantly different from GC in all variables [10 MWT (GEODT: p = 0.003; GEO: p = 0.015); 10 evocative MWT (GEODT: p 0.001; GEO: p = 0.001); STS (GEODT: p 0.001; GEO: p 0.001)]. In the TUG and MoCa variables only differences of the GEODT were observed [TUG: p = 0.030; MoCA: p = 0.0015] for the other two groups; in MoCA the GEODT increased significantly more than the GEO (p = 0.005) and GC (p = 0.003). In the Four-Stage variable, the proportion of individuals at risk of falling in the experimental groups (GEODT: 33.3%; GEO: 41.7%) was considerably lower than the CG (83.3%).
Conclusion(s): Both OTAGO exercise program and dual-task OTAGO program reduce the risk of falling in the older adult. However, the second one presents more significant results in the cognitive test than the OTAGO exercise program applied alone.
Implications: The fall risk is a multifatorial problem and it is necessary approching this problem in a global way.
The integration of the dual task in exercise programs is important for physiotherapists to promote health in older adults.
Keywords: Fall risk, dual-task, OTAGO exercise programme
Funding acknowledgements: This study was not funded.
Topic: Health promotion & wellbeing/healthy ageing; Mental health; Older people
Ethics approval required: Yes
Institution: Polytechnic of Porto, Portugal
Ethics committee: The Research Ethics Committee of Health School
Ethics number: Protocol n.(0239/2018)
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
