Article

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether trunk extension endurance changes with training
are associated with clinically meaningful improvements in balance among
mobility-limited older adults. DESIGN: Longitudinal data from a randomized
controlled trial. SETTING: Outpatient rehabilitation research center.
PARTICIPANTS: Community-dwelling older adults (N=64; mean age, 75.9y) with
mobility limitations as defined by a score of 4 to 10 on the Short Physical
Performance Battery. INTERVENTIONS: Sixteen weeks of progressive resistance
training. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Outcomes were the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and
the Unipedal Stance Time (UST). Predictors included leg strength, leg power,
trunk extension endurance, and the product of heart rate and blood pressure (RPP)
at the final stage of an exercise tolerance test. We performed an analysis of
data from participants who completed 16 weeks of training by using binary
outcomes defined by a clinically meaningful change (CMC) from baseline to
completion of the intervention (BBS=4 units; UST=5s). The association of
predictor variables with balance outcomes was examined separately and together in
multivariate adjusted logistic regression models. RESULTS: Trunk extension
endurance in seconds (1.04 [1.00-1.09]) was independently associated with CMC on
the BBS. Trunk extension endurance (1.02 [1.00-1.03]) was independently
associated with CMC on the UST. Other physical attributes were not associated
with meaningful change in balance. CONCLUSIONS: Improvements in trunk extension
endurance were independently associated with CMCs in balance in older adults. Leg
strength, leg power, and RPP were not associated with CMC in balance. Poor trunk
extension endurance may be a rehabilitative impairment worthy of further study as
a modifiable factor linked to balance among older adults.
CI - Copyright (c) 2011 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS