Tai Chi Chuan can improve balance and reduce fear of falling in community dwelling older adults: a randomized control trial.
Author: Hosseini L1, Kargozar E2, Sharifi F3, Negarandeh R4, Memari AH5, Navab E6
Affiliation:
1School of Nursing & Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
2Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
3Elderly Health Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
4Nursing & Midwifery Care Research Center, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
5Sports Medicine Research Center, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
6Critical care and Geriatric Nursing Department, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Conference/Journal: J Exerc Rehabil.
Date published: 2018 Dec 27
Other:
Volume ID: 14 , Issue ID: 6 , Pages: 1024-1031 , Special Notes: doi: 10.12965/jer.1836488.244. eCollection 2018 Dec. , Word Count: 211
Fear of falling and balance impairment are prevalent in older adults and cause major morbidities for this population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Tai Chi Chuan on balance and fear of falling in community-dwelling older adults. This study was a single-blind randomized control trial. Sixty older adults were randomly allocated into two groups using a 4-cell random block design. The participants of intervention group were trained in Tai Chi Chuan for eight weeks, twice a week, and 55 min in each session. Balance and fear of falling were assessed by Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, Tinetti test and Falls Efficacy Scale International in baseline and after 8 weeks. After eight weeks of intervention, the mean scores of the TUG and Tinetti scales in the intervention group were improved significantly compared to the baseline and the control group (P<0.001). Moreover, the intervention group showed a significant reduction in fear of falling scores (P<0.001), while those in the control group remained unchanged. Tai Chi Chuan effectively improves the balance and fear of falling and could be considered as a practical and useful method for fall prevention in community-dwelling older adults.
KEYWORDS: Alternative therapy; Exercise; Fall prevention; Older adults; Tai Chi Chuan
PMID: 30656165 PMCID: PMC6323335 DOI: 10.12965/jer.1836488.244
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