Abstract
Eight-Section Brocades and Yijin Jing consist of some routine movements that are too difficult for frail elders. A novel health qigong protocol was developed and its effectiveness for frail elders was examined using a randomized clinical trial (RCT). An expert panel performed functional anatomy analysis and safety field test prior to the RCT. The experimental group (n = 61, 83 ± 6 yr) was given a 12-week qigong exercise program, while the comparison group (n = 55, 84 ± 6 yr) participated in a newspaper reading program with the same duration and frequency. Pre-, mid-, post-, and follow-up assessments were conducted. At 12 weeks, the qigong group had significant improvements in thinking operations (F = 4.05, P = .02) and significant reduction of resting heart rate (F = 3.14, P = .045) as compared to the newspaper reading group. A trend of improvements in grip strength and a decreasing trend of depression levels were observed among the qigong group. Significant perceived improvements in physical health (F = 13.01, P = .001), activities of daily living (F = 5.32, P = .03), and overall health status (F = 15.26, P = .0001) were found. There are improvements in some aspects of psychosocial, cognitive, physical, and physiological domains. Clinical applications and possibilities for further research are discussed.
Highlights
The aging population around the globe will soar from 37.3 years in 2000 to 45.5 years in 2050 [1] which will be accompanied by various levels of frailty and eventually increase utilization of health care services [2, 3]
This paper reported the development of this new qigong protocol and adopted a randomized clinical trial (RCT) to examine its effectiveness for frail elders in the aspects of psychosocial, cognitive, physical, and physiological functioning
The mean rating for the minimental state examination (MMSE) score of experimental group participants was 23.69 (SD = 3.52) and that of the comparison group participants was 23.58 (SD = 3.61), which suggested that the participants ranged from mild cognitive impairment to normal cognitive functioning subject to their educational levels [27]
Summary
The aging population around the globe will soar from 37.3 years in 2000 to 45.5 years in 2050 [1] which will be accompanied by various levels of frailty and eventually increase utilization of health care services [2, 3]. Frail elders are at higher risk of physical and cognitive decline, disability, and death [4, 5]. Physical therapy and cognitive training programs are mainstream interventions to prevention of functional decline in frail elders [6,7,8]. Previous studies focused only on either the physical or cognitive aspect of the frail elders. Studies have shown that compliance was low among physically frail elders on convention programs [6]. Because of these limitations, there is an enormous need to explore alternative and complementary ways of reducing frailty and the related disabilities which would minimize burden on the health care system
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