TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Walking can be more effective than balance training in fall prevention among community-dwelling older adults
JO  - Geriatrics and gerontology international
A1  - Okubo, Yoshiro
A1  - Osuka, Yosuke
A1  - Jung, Songee
A1  - Rafael, Figueroa
A1  - Tsujimoto, Takehiko
A1  - Aiba, Tatsuya
A1  - Kim, Teaho
A1  - Tanaka, Kiyoji
SP  - 118
EP  - 125
VL  - 16
IS  - 1
N2  - AIM: To examine the effects of walking on falls among community-dwelling older adults while accounting for exposures. <br><br>METHODS: A total of 90 older adults, ranging in age from 65 to 79 years, were allocated into either the walking (brisk walking, n = 50) or the balance (balance and strength training, n = 40) group to participate in a 3-month supervised and 13-month unsupervised fall-prevention program held from 2012 to 2014 in Japan. Falls and trips that occurred during the 16-month period were monitored with a monthly fall calendar. The risk of falls and trips was evaluated by person-year, physically active person-day and person-step. <br><br>RESULTS: The walking group showed a significant reduction in the fall risk when evaluated by the falls per physically active person-day (rate ratio 0.38, 95% confidence interval 0.19-0.77) and falls per person-step (rate ratio 0.47, 95% confidence interval 0.26-0.85) compared with the balance group. In contrast, the number of trips significantly increased with walking, even when evaluated as trips per physically active person-day (rate ratio 1.50, 95% confidence interval 1.12-2.00). <br><br>CONCLUSION: The present findings suggest that walking among community-dwelling older adults can be more effective for fall prevention than balance training. However, because walking can induce more trips, walking should not be recommended for older adults who are susceptible to falling or frailty. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2015; ●●: ●●-●●.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1444-1586
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ggi.12444
ID  - ref1
ER  -