Falls Reduction and Exercise Training in an Assisted Living Population

Multicomponent exercise programs are currently an efficacious fall prevention strategy among community dwelling older adults although research documents differential falls susceptibility among frail older adults. This study aimed to examine the association between the Boston FICSIT (Frailty and Inju...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kimberly J. Alvarez, Shannen Kirchner, Serena Chu, Sarah Smith, Wendy Winnick-Baskin, Thelma J. Mielenz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2015-01-01
Series:Journal of Aging Research
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/957598
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Multicomponent exercise programs are currently an efficacious fall prevention strategy among community dwelling older adults although research documents differential falls susceptibility among frail older adults. This study aimed to examine the association between the Boston FICSIT (Frailty and Injuries: Cooperative Studies of Intervention Techniques) exercise program (the original exercise program to demonstrate that nursing home residents can increase strength) and falls incidents in an assisted living community. A descriptive cross-sectional study matched exercise charts for frequency and duration of training with number of reported fall incidents. Among 39 participants, 33% (n=13) reported a fall incident. Adults without a fall history reported more time in aerobic (26.30 versus 20.00, P value =0.71) and strength (1.50 versus 0.50, P value =0.01) training sessions compared to those with a fall history. Multivariate models adjusting for covariates illustrated a significant protective association between strength training and fall incidents (OR=0.25; 95% CI=0.07, 0.85). In this cross-sectional study, this progressive resistance exercise training program into an assisted living population was associated with a decrease in the number of fall incidents.
ISSN:2090-2204
2090-2212