Article

Older adults are increasingly being encouraged to exercise but this may lead to
muscle fatigue, which can adversely affect postural stability. Few studies have
investigated the effects of upper body exercise on postural sway in groups at
risk of falling, such as the elderly. The purpose of this study was to compare
the effects arm crank ergometry (ACE), cycle ergometry (CE) and treadmill walking
(TM) on postural sway in healthy older females. In addition, this study sought to
determine the time necessary to recover postural control after exercise. A total
of nine healthy older females participated in this study. Participants stood on a
force platform to assess postural sway which was measured by displacement of the
centre of pressure before and after six separate exercise trials. Each
participant completed three incremental exercise tests to 85% of individual's
theoretical maximal heart rate (HRMAX) for ACE, CE and TM. Subsequent tests
involved 20-min of ACE, CE and TM exercise at a relative workload corresponding
to 50% of each individual's predetermined heart rate reserve (HRE). Post fatigue
effects and postural control recovery were measured at different times after
exercise (1, 3, 5, 10, 15 and 30-min). None of the participants exhibited
impaired postural stability after ACE. In contrast, CE and TM elicited
significant post exercise balance impairments, which lasted for approximately 10
min post exercise. We provide evidence of an exercise mode which does not elicit
post exercise balance impairments. Older adults should exercise caution
immediately following exercise engaging the lower limbs to avoid fall risk.
CI - Copyright (c) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS