Exercise and prevention of falls in the elderly

• exercise as a measure in the prevention of falls in older people
  • falls in older people are not purely random events but can be predicted by assessing a number of risk factors
    • some of these risk factors (e.g., reduced muscle strength and impaired balance and gait) can be modified using exercise, whereas others (e.g., poor vision, psychoactive medication use) require different intervention approaches.
    • Sherrington et al concluded that exercise can prevent falls in older people (1)
      • with respect to prevention of falls
      • greater relative effects are seen in programs that include exercises that challenge balance, use a higher dose of exercise, and do not include a walking program

Notes:

• falls are not the only important outcome for exercise trials in older people, and other studies have shown that walking programs have health benefits including improved fitness, weight loss, and lower blood pressure (2)

Reference:

• 1. Sherrington C, Whitney JC, Lord SR, Herbert RD, Cumming RG, Close JC. Effective exercise for the prevention of falls: a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Am Geriatr Soc. 2008 Dec;56(12):2234-43
• 2.Murphy MH, Nevill AM, Murtagh EM et al. The effect of walking on fitness, fatness and resting blood pressure: A meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials. Prev Med 2007;44:377-385.