Measures of Dynamic Balance in Older Adults After Six Weeks of Strength and Balance Training.

Abstract

SCIENTIFIC ABSTRACT: Aging is associated with many decreases in the performance variables on functional ability. One of these changes that occur in the elderly is a decrease in dynamic balance, which can lead to an increased risk of falls in this population. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects that physical activity has on dynamic balance in elderly individuals. METHODS: Participants were assigned to either a control group (C), strength training group (ST), balance training group (BT) or a group that combined both strength training and balance training (SAB). Participants volunteered to enter into a six week supervised training program. The Fullerton Advanced Balance Scale (FAB-Scale) was assessed before (PRE) and after the six week training period (POST). Data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA on the delta values from baseline (p < 0.05). RESULTS: A significant main effect for time (PRE vs. POST) was observed for the dependent variable FAB-Scale (p<0.010). Post-hoc results revealed that FAB-Scale scores were significantly improved in the SAB compared to the control group (p<0.001), but only showed a trend for significance over the ST (p=0.07) and BT (p=0.09) groups. Neither the ST or BT groups showed significant improvement compared to the control group. CONCLUSION: This study presents evidence that while both strength training and balance training can increase dynamic balance, a combination of the two training techniques is significantly effective at improving dynamic balance. It is also notable that all training groups showed some improvements in balance and mobility after just six weeks of training.