Efficiency of Physical Activity on the Physical Condition of Elderly Women - Full Text View

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to identify the effects and the efficiency of an adapted physical activity program as regards the physical condition of older Brazilian women.

Condition	Intervention
Aging	Other: Physical activity program

Study Type:	Interventional
Study Design:	Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment Masking: Single Blind (Outcomes Assessor) Primary Purpose: Treatment
Official Title:	Effects of an Adapted Physical Activity Program on the Physical Condition of Elderly Women: an Analysis of Efficiency

Further study details as provided by Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos:

Primary Outcome Measures:

Efficiency Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is a test of operational investigation It was used to determine the relative efficiency of the older women, considered Decision Making Units (DMU). This analysis supports the hypothesis that the outputs do not need to be proportional to the inputs.

Secondary Outcome Measures:

Grip strength [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
Grip strength was measured using a Sammons Preston Swedley-Type hand dynamometer (Jamar® Bolingbrook IL, 60440). The test was performed three times on the dominant upper limb at 10-second intervals between each run. The grip strength assigned to each participant was the highest of the three values measured. Subjects were guided to hold the grip meter during exhalation without performing the Valsalva maneuver; they were encouraged verbally throughout the test.
Sit-and-Reach Test [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
The Sit-and-Reach Test was employed to evaluate the participants' flexibility of the posterior trunk and lower limbs. The movement was performed three times. The flexibility assigned to subjects was the highest value measured.
Static balance [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
Static balance was verified by the One-Leg Stance Test with eyes open31. The subjects gazed at a fixed point two meters away for no more than 30 seconds, with one leg bent at the knee. The test was done three times with open and closed eyes and for both legs, taking into account for each condition (open or closed eyes) the mean value of the measures.
Dynamic balance [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
Dynamic balance was evaluated by the Maximum Gait Velocity (MGV). The subjects were instructed to walk along a 33.3cm-wide and 3.33m-long band painted on the floor in the shortest possible time. The test was performed three times. The dynamic balance value assigned to each subject was the mean time walking along the band.
VO2max [ Time Frame: 1 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
The Rockport 1-Mile Walk Test was used to determine the subjects' physical condition estimated by the VO2max

Enrollment:	120
Study Start Date:	April 2010
Study Completion Date:	May 2011
Primary Completion Date:	April 2011 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)

Arms	Assigned Interventions
Experimental: Physical activity program Group The physical activity program consists of 123 sessions over 52 weeks. The initial assessment is followed by 12 weeks of physical activity. After this ten-week period, a second assessment is performed, followed by 3 weeks of rest. This is followed by a further 17 weeks of activities, 4 weeks of activities followed by 4 weeks of rest. Finally, there were 12 more weeks of activities.	Other: Physical activity program The activities are done in groups of no more than 25 individuals; these activities are standardized and agreed upon by the research team, which hold monthly meetings to conduct the study. Each physical activity session consists of 8-10 minutes of exercises aimed at stretching the major muscle groups (pectoral muscles, latissimus dorsi, cervical paravertebral, and posterior and anterior thigh muscles); 9 minutes of aerobic endurance activity (march/fast walk); 7-10 minutes of adapted strength exercises, power, and endurance training; 14-16 minutes of coordination, agility, and flexibility exercises, and 5-7 minutes of respiratory and relaxation exercises.

Arms

Assigned Interventions

Experimental: Physical activity program Group

The physical activity program consists of 123 sessions over 52 weeks. The initial assessment is followed by 12 weeks of physical activity. After this ten-week period, a second assessment is performed, followed by 3 weeks of rest. This is followed by a further 17 weeks of activities, 4 weeks of activities followed by 4 weeks of rest. Finally, there were 12 more weeks of activities.

Other: Physical activity program

The activities are done in groups of no more than 25 individuals; these activities are standardized and agreed upon by the research team, which hold monthly meetings to conduct the study. Each physical activity session consists of 8-10 minutes of exercises aimed at stretching the major muscle groups (pectoral muscles, latissimus dorsi, cervical paravertebral, and posterior and anterior thigh muscles); 9 minutes of aerobic endurance activity (march/fast walk); 7-10 minutes of adapted strength exercises, power, and endurance training; 14-16 minutes of coordination, agility, and flexibility exercises, and 5-7 minutes of respiratory and relaxation exercises.

Detailed Description:

Although physical activity programs for the elderly have proved to be able to curb harmful changes due to ageing, not all programs show the same effectiveness, even though they are generally regarded as being effective. The existence of a wide variety of programs calls for debate about their outcomes.

Specific research tools and designs can assist in identifying not only program effectiveness but also program efficiency and use in terms of a better physical performance of subjects on carrying out exercises with less effort, influenced by multiple factors, one of them being adherence to the program. These analyses allow the influence of efficiency and the factors that determine it or are associated with it to be tested, and can provide classifications and subgroups to which interventions should be adapted if they are to offer the best service to them in the short and medium term.

Eligibility

Ages Eligible for Study:	60 Years and older
Genders Eligible for Study:	Female
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:	Yes

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

60 or more years
participants of an Adult Revitalization Program in São Carlos (São Paulo State - Brazil)

Exclusion Criteria:

physical characteristics and previous health problems that might hinder their participation in the program activities.
adherence to the program sessions lower than 75%.

Contacts and Locations

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01558401

Locations

Brazil
Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos
Sao Carlos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, 13.565-905

Sponsors and Collaborators

Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos

Investigators

Principal Investigator:

José R. Rebelatto, Ph.D.

Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos

More Information

Publications:

Gillespie LD, Robertson MC, Gillespie WJ, Lamb SE, Gates S, Cumming RG, Rowe BH. Interventions for preventing falls in older people living in the community. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2009 Apr 15;(2):CD007146. Review.

Conn VS, Minor MA, Burks KJ, Rantz MJ, Pomeroy SH. Integrative review of physical activity intervention research with aging adults. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2003 Aug;51(8):1159-68. Review.

Laine J, Finne-Soveri UH, Björkgren M, Linna M, Noro A, Häkkinen U. The association between quality of care and technical efficiency in long-term care. Int J Qual Health Care. 2005 Jun;17(3):259-67. Epub 2005 Mar 23.

Greve P, Wanderley Fda S, Rebelatto JR. The effects of periodic interruptions of physical activities on the physical capacities of adult active women. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2009 Sep-Oct;49(2):268-71. Epub 2008 Nov 6.

Vogel T, Brechat PH, Leprêtre PM, Kaltenbach G, Berthel M, Lonsdorfer J. Health benefits of physical activity in older patients: a review. Int J Clin Pract. 2009 Feb;63(2):303-20. Review.

Additional publications automatically indexed to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT Number):

Alburquerque-Sendín F, Barberio-Mariano E, Brandão-Santana N, Rebelatto DA, Rebelatto JR. Effects of an adapted physical activity program on the physical condition of elderly women: an analysis of efficiency. Rev Bras Fisioter. 2012 Jul-Aug;16(4):328-36. Epub 2012 Jun 14.

Responsible Party:	Francisco Alburquerque, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT01558401 History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers:	Ethics Committe UFSCar Nº104/4
Study First Received:	March 14, 2012
Last Updated:	March 19, 2012
Health Authority:	Brazil: Ethics Committee

Keywords provided by Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos:

physical activity
elderly
women
efficiency

ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on June 18, 2013