C.S.I. Reference Articles

Exercise Reduces Falls In Older Women

In this week’s special issue of the British Medical Journal, professor John Campbell, dean of the faculty of medicine at the University of Otago Medical School in Dunedin, New Zealand, and his colleagues examine the effectiveness of a trial to reduce falls, which is the most common cause of injury in older people.

The study finds that an individual programme of strength and balance retraining exercises improved physical function and was effective in reducing falls and injuries in women 80 years and older.

Prospective community studies have detailed risk factors for falls in elderly people and identified those old people who are likely to fall; they also provide the basis for preventive studies. The risk factors most commonly identified, which are possibly those most amenable to interventions that can be carried out in primary care, are loss of muscle strength and flexibility, and impaired balance and reaction time.

However, some studies have shown that increased activity in very old people can mean more falls and injuries.

Meta-analysis of seven studies in the “frailty and injuries: cooperative studies of intervention techniques” trials showed that strength and balance training reduced the frequency of falls. Three of the study sites showed an increased, but not statistically significant, risk of falling with the training programme. These studies used a variety of additional intervention strategies and not all could be applied easily in a general practice setting.

Women aged 80 years and older, were visited at home and given an individually-tailored set of exercises and a walking plan. The programme was successful and the authors conclude older adults should be encouraged to increase their exercise levels to gain wide-ranging benefits.