Original articleA Randomized Controlled Trial to Investigate the Effects of Water-Based Exercise to Improve Falls Risk and Physical Function in Older Adults With Lower-Extremity Osteoarthritis
Section snippets
Design
This was an observer-blinded RCT. No changes were made to the trial design after trial start.
Recruitment and Participants
Recruitment began in January 2009, and baseline testing and intervention occurred in 2 groups in March and June 2009. Participants responded to public advertisements in local newspapers, radio, and television and posters and flyers placed in local community centers, general practitioners' (GPs') and physiotherapists' offices, libraries, churches, and organizations catering to elders. Volunteers
Results
Of 114 volunteers for the study, 52 individuals were eligible and consented to participate. Before baseline testing, 13 individuals withdrew. Figure 1 shows the flow of participants through the study.
Baseline characteristics of the 39 participants assessed at baseline and randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups are listed in table 2. Average ± SD age of participants was 75±1.3 years (range, 70.5–77.9y) and 74% were women. Most participants were using a number of prescribed
Discussion
A 12-week twice-weekly water-based exercise program that specifically targeted balance in older adults with OA did not result in a significant difference in falls risk compared with attending a community-based computer skills training program. Although participants subjectively told us of their perceived improvements in balance and our observation of the experimental group's performance in the water over the course of the program gave testimony to this, these changes were not statistically
Conclusions
A 12-week twice-weekly water-based exercise class did not reduce falls risk compared with attending a time-dose–equivalent computer skills training class. Similar studies have reported significant improvements after water-based exercise, but control groups in these studies did not receive sedentary control activities. Significant improvements were found for both groups postintervention for the Step Test and we suggested that this improvement may be the result of participants getting out of the
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