View clinical trials related to Accidental Falls.
Filter by:The efficacy of exercise programs to prevent falls among older people is well documented in the literature. However, older people's adherence to these exercise programs has been reported to be suboptimal, varying between 21% and 74%. In addition, about 45% of people aged over 60 years do not meet the minimum recommended level of physical activity. In this context, dance is a promising alternative to traditional exercise programs, as it can positively influence important risk factors for falls, such as sedentary lifestyle, balance impairments and muscle weakness. Nevertheless, a recent systematic review conducted in this area show that the lack of randomized clinical trials as well as the low methodological quality of existing studies do not allow to reach definitive conclusions on the real effects of dance on risk factors for falls. A type of dance that is becoming popular among the older population in Brazil is the Senior Dance. Senior Dance classes consist of different choreographies, which include rhythmic and simple movements with rhythmic folk songs. The concentration required to learn the choreographies challenges balance, motor coordination and cognitive function. Thus the present study is a randomized clinical trial aiming to investigate the Senior Dance effect on balance, mobility and cognitive function, compared with a control group, among older people living in the community. A total of 82 subjects will be randomly allocated into two groups. The intervention group will participate in a 12-week, twice-weekly group-based program of Senior Dance, while the control will be encouraged to maintain their current routine activities. Outcomes measures (balance, mobility and cognitive function) will be evaluated before and after the intervention by an assessor blinded to group allocation. The results of this study will assist health practitioners when prescribing intervention for the older population.
The objectives of this study are to evaluate the usefulness of an intervention utilizing the NintendoTM Wii console in order to improve balance, thereby decreasing both the fear of falling as well as the number of falls, and to evaluate the correlation between balance as determined by the console and the value obtained in the Tinetti tests and the one foot stationary test.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the long term balance-enhancing effects of insoles that are hard and thin for older adults. Thirty older female adults between the ages of 65-84 years will be recruited for this study. Twenty participants (20) will wear the experimental insole and ten (10) participants will work their usual insole, during a 12 week period. Balance and foot sensitivity testing will take place at 0, 6 and 12 weeks. These tests will involve measurement of body motion and foot pressure in order to evaluate balance control. Additionally, each participant will be asked to return a bi-weekly postcard that will report on footwear wearing patterns and any falls (or fall-related) incidents that have occurred during the 12 weeks.
Falls are the leading cause of injuries and injury-related deaths among older adults over the age of 65 in the United States. To help reduce the number of these falls, there is growing interest in using reactive balance training to improve the reactive response to common perturbations (e.g., tripping and slipping). The goal of this study was to compare treadmill-based reactive balance training versus Tai Chi performed at, and among residents of, older adult senior housing. We hypothesized that participants randomized to reactive balance training (RBT) would show better performance on reactive balance tests compared to participants randomized to Tai Chi. We also hypothesized that participants randomized to Tai Chi would show better performance on clinical tests of balance and mobility compared to participants randomized to RBT. The long-term goal of this work is to demonstrate the value of RBT over Tai Chi for preventing falls resulting from sudden, external perturbations. Thirty-five residents of five senior housing facilities were allocated to either treadmill-based reactive balance training or Tai Chi training. Both interventions were performed three times per week for four weeks, with each session lasting approximately 30 minutes. A battery of balance tests was performed at baseline, and again one week, one month, three months, and six months post-training. The battery included six standard clinical tests of balance and mobility, and a test of reactive balance performance.
Knowing the effects of proprioceptive exercise program in improving balance, gait and risk of falls in institutionalized elderly.
Every year, nearly 30% of people aged over 65 fall at least once and about 15% fall at least twice. These falls can have serious consequences that are a significant threat to the independence and well-being of older people. From an economic perspective, the cost of medical care related to falls and resulting injuries is very high and continue to grow with the aging of the population. Therefore falls prevention is a public health priority. Many data suggest that cognitive, common disorders in the elderly, is a major risk factor for falls and the elderly often have difficulty managing their parallel postural stability and other situations requiring attentional resources. Furthermore, the data used to evoke a role of vitamin D in the risk of falls in the elderly. Indeed, vitamin D has beneficial effects on muscle and on the human brain and several recent studies have shown the existence of positive relationship between serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D and cognitive function. These different actions may explain the beneficial effect of vitamin D supplementation on the risk of falling for practicing daily oral doses of vitamin D in the range of 700-1000 IU. Our goal in this study is to confirm the existence of a link between vitamin D status and some areas of cognitive functions, and analyze the roles played by vitamin D deficiency and cognitive impairment in the occurrence of falls. The study will also seek the existence of a threshold level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D below which may arise cognitive disorders. The prospective follow-up of patients for 2 years will study the effect of correcting the vitamin D deficiency (initial correction and regular supplementation) on cognitive function, balance, walking and the occurrence of falls. The study will be conducted in 150 subjects aged 50 years and over and fell in 150 subjects aged 50 and over at risk of falling. These patients will be enrolled in the Emergency Services, Orthopedics, Geriatrics, and Rheumatology of the University Hospital of Caen. All subjects will receive a dose of 25 hydroxyvitamin D, a comprehensive study of cognitive function, tests of balance and walking and assessment of activities of daily living and depression. All the examinations and tests will be carried out during the same half day. According to current recommendations, it will be prescribed a treatment with Vitamin D to subjects with a lowered rate of 25 hydroxyvitamin D (<30 ng / ml) to normalize the rate and will be advised doctors to prescribe regular supplementation vitamin D in order to maintain it in the standard rate (30 to 80 ng / ml). The effect of the correction of hypovitaminosis D, confirmed by controlling the rate of 25 hydroxyvitamin D, on cognitive functions, balance and walking will be analyzed 3 months and 9 months. During the two years following their inclusion in the study, subjects will be contacted by a phone call every 3 months during which will be recorded any falls they have been victims, as well as changes to their drug treatments, particularly case of regular intake of vitamin D supplementation. If our hypothesis were true, it would be appropriate to consider a new approach to prevention of fractures involving the correction of vitamin D deficiency, cognitive rehabilitation and cognitive-motor drive in subjects with cognitive impairment.
This study evaluates the use of Playware technology for balance training. Falling among elder is a costly problem. Research shows that training can help prevent falls. Pilot studies of the use of Interactive Modular Tiles (IMT) show that the participants can highly increase their physical abilities. The interventions group will train using interactive modular tiles. The tiles include preprogrammed games that create playful training for the participants. The control group will receive "usual care", which here refers to normal day activities. The intervention will be done 2 times a week for 12 weeks, each session lasting 1 hour and each participant receiving 13 minutes of training each time.
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder that is characterized by a multitude of symptoms. Impairments in balance, muscle deficits and increased risk of falls are commonly experienced in PD.The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of two different resistance training programs on improving balance and muscular strength to thereby reduce the risk of falls in those with PD. This study will randomize individuals to one of two groups, a power training group, or a strength training group. Both interventional groups will participate in 12 weeks of resistance training, two times per week for an hour each exercise session.
The participants will complete a series of balance assessments with a licensed physical (PT) or occupational therapist (OT) or qualified research assistant (RA) at Blue Marble Game Co or in their respective homes at the start of the study, at crossover and upon completion of the study. During this study a PT, OT, or RA trained in fall risk management will supervise the instruction and practice by participants of the home exercise programs during the initial 2-3 hour introduction to the study activities. Participants will be asked to exercise 3/week for one month then crossover to the alternative exercise program and exercise 3/week for a second month.
The aim of this pragmatic cluster-randomized trial is to determine the effectiveness of an evidence-based, patient-centered multifactorial fall injury prevention strategy in community dwelling older adults at risk of falls recruited from 86 primary care practices around the U.S.