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Reducing the fear of falling among community‐dwelling elderly adults through cognitive‐behavioural strategies and intense Tai Chi exercise: a randomized controlled trial
Author(s) -
Huang TzuTing,
Yang LinHui,
Liu ChiaYih
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2010.05553.x
Subject(s) - fear of falling , randomized controlled trial , medicine , psychological intervention , cognition , falling (accident) , quality of life (healthcare) , gerontology , psychology , poison control , injury prevention , psychiatry , environmental health , nursing , surgery
huang t.‐t., yang l.‐h. & liu c.‐y. (2011) Reducing the fear of falling among community‐dwelling elderly adults through cognitive‐behavioural strategies and intense Tai Chi exercise: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Advanced Nursing 67 (5), 961–971. Abstract Aim. To examine the effectiveness of cognitive‐behavioural strategies with/without intense Tai Chi exercise in reducing fear of falling among community‐dwelling elderly adults. Background. Fear of falling is a major health problem among community‐dwelling older persons. The prevalence of this fear ranges from 29% to 77%, indicating the importance of developing effective strategies to reduce fear of falling among elderly adults. Methods. Data were collected from January to December 2007. A randomized controlled trial with three groups (control, cognitive‐behavioural and cognitive‐behavioural with Tai Chi). Participants were assessed at baseline for demographic data, falls‐related history, and fear of falling. Data on these variables plus falls, mobility, social support behaviour and satisfaction, and quality of life were also collected at 2 and 5 months after interventions. Results. Participants in the three groups differed significantly in both measures of fear of falling ( F = 20·89, P < 0·001; F = 6·09, P < 0·001) and mobility ( F = 30·33, P < 0·001), social support behaviour and satisfaction ( F = 3·32, P < 0·05 and F = 6·35, P < 0·001, respectively), and quality of life ( F = 16·66, P < 0·001). In addition, participants who received the cognitive‐behavioural intervention with Tai Chi had significantly lower fear of falling scores ( P < 0·001) and higher mobility ( P < 0·001), social support satisfaction ( P < 0·01) and quality of life ( P < 0·001) than the cognitive‐behavioural alone and control groups at 5 months. The three groups did not differ significantly in falls. Conclusion. The results of this trial suggest that the cognitive‐behavioural intervention with Tai Chi exercise helped community‐dwelling elderly adults to enhance their mobility, to manage their fear of falling and to increase their quality of life.