Clinical trial NCT05388227: Pole Walking Intervention in Retirement Communities
Official title: Pole Walking Intervention Within Independent Living/Retirement Communities: Feasibility and Pilot
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Conditions: Fall Injury
Osteoporotic Fractures
Keywords: Patient oriented
Exercise intervention
Feasibility
Lead sponsor: University of Saskatchewan
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation
name: Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research
First posted: 2022-05-24
Enrollment: 50
Sex: ALL
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Observational model: COHORT
Time perspective: PROSPECTIVE
Sampling method: NON_PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: Residents of independent living/retirement communities

Brief summary: This patient-oriented study aims to co-design and pilot a pole walking intervention with residents and staff of the participating independent living/retirement communities. The proposed pilot will answer the following principal question: Is pole walking intervention feasible in the independent living/retirement communities? We will also assess if pole walking intervention will be associated with improved physical activity, function, mobility and quality of life. The final format of the intervention will be designed with resident- and staff-advisors. We anticipate that the pole walking sessions will be held outdoors, 2-3 times a week, for 20-60 min/session, over 12 weeks.

Detailed description: Pole walking provides an attractive form of exercise therapy for older adults. It is a simple, well-tolerated and effective means to improve overall functional fitness in older adults. Pole walking has improved upper and lower body muscle strength, cardiovascular endurance, and flexibility in community dwelling older adults. It has been positively associated with balance, functional mobility, muscle strength, and aerobic exercise capacity in older adults. Pole walking is considered to offer a safe format for walking as poles provide support and help with balance and thus, contribute to confidence in being active. However, there has not yet been a study assessing the feasibility of pole walking intervention in older adults living in independent living/retirement communities.

This study is a patient-oriented pilot intervention. Our target is to include 50 independent living/retirement community's residents. Pole walking exercises are based on ongoing, patient-oriented Nordic Walking intervention, tailored for participants and progressive in nature. Training sessions will be led by trained peer/staff/student-instructors. Training sessions will be held outdoors, 2-3 times a week, for 20-60 min/session, over 12 weeks.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Being an ambulatory resident in the independent living/retirement
* Pass the Get Active Questionnaire. If the participant has heart conditions, angina during daily living, balance, and bone or joint problems, then a Physician Clearance Form is required to be filled out and signed by the participant's family physician.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Using assistive devices for mobility
* Being active (moderate-to-vigorous physical activity\>1h/week)
* Diagnosed with Parkinson's disease

Primary outcomes:
measure: Feasibility of pole walking intervention
timeFrame: 5-10 minutes
measure: Protocol fidelity
timeFrame: 3-5 minutes
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Muscle strength
timeFrame: 3-5 minutes
measure: Gait and functional balance
timeFrame: 3-5 minutes
measure: Walking test
timeFrame: 5-10 minutes
measure: Imaged bone and muscle properties
timeFrame: 20-30 minutes
measure: Total body lean and fat tissue mass, bone density at total body, hip and lumbar spine.
timeFrame: 10-20 minutes
measure: Exercise confidence
timeFrame: 3-5 minutes
measure: Nutrition
timeFrame: 20 minutes
measure: Fear of falling
timeFrame: 2-5 minutes
measure: Health-related quality of life
timeFrame: 3-5 minutes
measure: Physical activity
timeFrame: 7 days
Other outcomes:
measure: Adverse Events
timeFrame: 2-5 minutes
measure: Health
timeFrame: 5-15 minutes
Locations:
city: Saskatoon
country: Canada
facility: Saija Kontulainen, University of Saskatchewan
state: Saskatchewan
Study officials:
affiliation: Professor, College of Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan
name: Saija A Kontulainen, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: