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Exercise Helps Prevent Falls in Elders

A program that focused on flexibility, leg strength, and balance reduced the incidence of falls among these elderly subjects.

There are numerous ways to prevent falls, but little is known about the different contributions of each preventive strategy. In this study, 1090 healthy, elderly Australians (age, 70 or older) who lived in their own homes were assigned randomly to 1 of 8 groups. One group was a control, and the other 7 groups received various combinations of 3 interventions: group exercise (1-hour weekly sessions for 15 weeks), home-hazard management, and vision improvement. Participants were followed for 18 months.

The incidence of falls was significantly lower in the exercise-only group than in the control group (56% vs. 64%). Neither home-hazard management nor vision improvement alone was associated with a significant reduction in falls; however, when either intervention was combined with exercise, the reduction was significant. The largest effect was seen in the group that underwent all 3 interventions (incidence of falls, 48%). The number needed to treat to prevent 1 fall per year was 14 for exercise alone and 7 for all 3 interventions combined.

Comment: Although falls may be prevented best through multiple interventions, exercise training appears to be the single most effective strategy. In this study, the exercise intervention focused on improving flexibility, leg strength, and balance. At the time of publication, the full text of the original article was available at http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/325/7356/128 free of charge.

— Keith I. Marton, MD

Published in Journal Watch General Medicine August 23, 2002

Citation(s):

Day L et al. Randomised factorial trial of falls prevention among older people living in their own homes. BMJ 2002 Jul 20; 325:128-31.

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• Medline abstract (Free)