Clinical trial NCT03659396: the Effects of Individualized Tai Chi Training on Balance Control in Elderly
Official title: the Effects of Individualized Tai Chi Training on Balance Control in Elderly
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Tai Ji
Lead sponsor: National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2018-09-06
Enrollment: 70
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 65
Standard ages: OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: Traditional Tai Chi is too complex for most elderly individuals. There have been few reports regarding the development of simplified Tai Chi programs to suit the physical needs of elderly adults. However, these programs were not individualized according to the participants' balance control abilities.The investigators already developed an individualized Tai Chi program. This objective of the study was to investigate the effect of individualized Tai Chi training.

Detailed description: Background: Balance control is an important skill for human to maintain a myriad of postures and activities. The elderly suffering from balance impairment by aging have high rate to increase fall-related injuries, restricted activities, declined physical functions, and decrease quality of life. Tai Chi (TC) has been demonstrated as an innovative way to promote balance function, which is a suitable exercise for older people because of its slow movement, changeable base of supports, multi-directions weight shifting and less impact on lower extremities. Recent systematic reviews have shown that TC exercises have significant benefits in improving balance control, but most of them are only connected with healthy elderlies. Actually, the long standing time and training duration, challenged recollection by its sequence forms, and complex coordination for upper and lower extremities of TC usually make it difficult to practice for some elderlies with poor physical functions. Therefore, the method of individualized TC exercise program, integrated with biomechanical analyses, is developed in this research. It can afford an easier and more applicable training for elderly to improve the balance abilities.

Purposes:To evaluate the effects of individualized Tai Chi training on balance control in elderly.

Methods: This research is a quasi-experimental design and prospective study. Participants were recruited and assigned into individualized TC, entire TC group and home-based education group

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

Participants in the study were community-dwelling volunteers aged over 65 years. Participants were ambulatory and did not

Exclusion Criteria:

have any history of

1. diagnosed central nervous system
2. vestibular pathology
3. cognitive impairment
4. visual deficit
5. fracture of lower limb in recent 6 months
6. with Tai Chi practice experience for more than 2 months.
7. severe hearing impairment to follow instruction

Primary outcomes:
measure: Time Up and Go
timeFrame: 8 weeks
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Berg balance scale
timeFrame: 8 weeks
measure: functional reach
timeFrame: 8 weeks
measure: muscle strength of hip flexor and extensor
timeFrame: 8 weeks
measure: muscle strength of hip abductor and adductor
timeFrame: 8 weeks
measure: muscle strength of knee flexor and extensor
timeFrame: 8 weeks
measure: muscle strength of ankle dorsiflexor and plantarflexor
timeFrame: 8 weeks
Other outcomes:
Locations:
Study officials:
References:
citation: Penn IW, Sung WH, Lin CH, Chuang E, Chuang TY, Lin PH. Effects of individualized Tai-Chi on balance and lower-limb strength in older adults. BMC Geriatr. 2019 Aug 27;19(1):235. doi: 10.1186/s12877-019-1250-8.