The Effects of a Walking Program on Balance, Falls and Well Being in Individuals Residing in Long-term Care

NCT01277809 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: BIO-BEB 10-125
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 179
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a regular walking program (which inevitably involves human interaction) compared to a usual care condition and to a human interaction condition (without the extra walking program) in individuals residing in Long-Term Care (LTC). Outcomes of interest include: balance, strength, mobility, endurance, walking distance; rate and severity of falls; activities of daily living; mood and behaviour. It is hypothesized that participants taking part in the walking program will demonstrate maximal benefits compared to the no treatment control group (usual care) and the participants who will only receive social interaction. It is expected that benefits of the walking program will include decreased fall rates, and improved balance, endurance, strength, mood, behaviour, activities of daily living and quality of life indices. Given research findings that the addition of pleasant activities improves resident mood (Teri et al, 1997; 2003), it is expected that participants in the social interaction only group will demonstrate improvements in mood and other indices of quality of life.

Conditions

Accidental Falls; Muscle Weakness; Gait, Unsteady; Depression; Behavior

Keywords

Long term care; Aging; Accidental Falls; Muscle Weakness; Gait; Physical Fitness; Muscle Strength; Postural Balance; Activities of Daily Living; Body Weight; Blood Pressure; Depression; Behavior; Dementia

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Falls

  The incidence and nature of falls will be prospectively collected using a simple daily Fall Diary for the period of the intervention (4 months) and for 4 months following intervention. The Fall Diary will be kept at the residents' bedside and will staff will be asked to record the nature and location of the fall, activity and symptoms at the time of the fall, type of footwear, injuries resulting from the fall. Diaries will be collected every week by study personnel.

  Eight months

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Fitness

  Eight months

• Balance

  Eight months

• Grip Strength

  Eight months

• Gait speed

  Eight months

• Physical Activities of Daily Living

  Eight months

Study Arms (3)

Usual Care

NO INTERVENTION

Participants will receive care as usual (Usual Care Group; UCG) that is provided by their long-term care unit.

Interpersonal Interaction

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants will receive stationary 1:1 interaction time with the same research personnel who conduct the third group walking session at each individual care facility in order to control for the interpersonal interaction likely to be involved in the walking program. This group will receive the equivalent interpersonal interaction time with research personnel as those participating in the walking group. This interaction time will occur with the participant stationary, rather than walking with the researcher.

Behavioral: Interpersonal Interaction

Walking Program

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will walk five times per week under the supervision of a licensed physiotherapist.

Behavioral: Walking Program

Interventions

Interpersonal Interaction BEHAVIORAL

Participants will receive stationary 1:1 interaction time with the same research personnel who conduct the third group walking session at each individual care facility in order to control for the interpersonal interaction likely to be involved in the walking program (Interpersonal Interaction Group; IIG). This group will receive the equivalent interpersonal interaction time with research personnel as those participating in the WPG group. This interaction time will occur with the participant stationary, rather than walking with the researcher.

Interpersonal Interaction

Walking Program BEHAVIORAL

Participants will walk five times per week, supervised by a licensed physiotherapist. Subjects will in general gradually increase their daily supervised walking time as tolerated to a maximum of 30 minutes once per day. The distance and number of minutes walked each time will be recorded. Interpersonal interaction will occur during the walking sessions, and will be similar in quality and quantity to that during the Interpersonal Interaction Group.

Walking Program

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 60 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Adults residing in a long term care facility
• Able to follow simple instructions
• Can ambulate with or without a walking aid for at least 10 meters

You may not qualify if:

• Cardiovascular event within past 6 months
• Severe arthritis
• Clinical significant vestibular disorder
• Uncontrolled hypertension
• Uncontrolled epilepsy
• Fracture within the past 4 months
• Admission into an acute care facility in last 4 months
• Scheduled for surgery or hospitalization in next 6 months
• Already participating in another regular exercise program (three or more times per week) aimed at improving balance or strength

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Saskatchewan: lead
• Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Saskatoon Health Region

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7K 0M7, Canada

Location

Related Publications (2)

• Kalu ME, Dal Bello-Haas V, Hadjistavropoulos T, Thorpe L, Griffin M, Ploeg J, Richardson J. The Effects of a Walking Intervention on Gait Parameters in Older Adults Residing in Long-Term Care: A Randomized Controlled Trial. J Nutr Health Aging. 2021;25(9):1099-1105. doi: 10.1007/s12603-021-1683-6.

  PMID: 34725668 DERIVED

• Dal Bello-Haas VP, Thorpe LU, Lix LM, Scudds R, Hadjistavropoulos T. The effects of a long-term care walking program on balance, falls and well-being. BMC Geriatr. 2012 Dec 18;12:76. doi: 10.1186/1471-2318-12-76.

  PMID: 23249431 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Muscle Weakness; Gait Disorders, Neurologic; Depression; Behavior; Body Weight; Dementia

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Muscular Diseases; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Neuromuscular Manifestations; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Pathologic Processes; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Behavioral Symptoms; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Neurocognitive Disorders; Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Lilian U Thorpe, MD, PhD

  University of Saskatchewan

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

• Vanina Dal Bello-Haas, Ph. D, P.T.

  McMaster University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: M.D.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 13, 2011
• First Posted: January 17, 2011
• Study Start: December 1, 2010
• Primary Completion: October 19, 2018
• Study Completion: October 19, 2018
• Last Updated: October 23, 2018

Record last verified: 2018-10

Locations

CA (1)