Open AccessPROPRIOCEPTION DEFICITS
Author(s) -
Marwa Shah,
Izza Anjum,
M. Zafar,
Aruba Saeed,
Misbah Ghous
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the professional medical journal/the professional medical journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2071-7733
pISSN - 1024-8919
DOI - 10.29309/tpmj/18.4592
Subject(s) - medicine , proprioception , balance (ability) , physical therapy , berg balance scale , physical medicine and rehabilitation , population , test (biology) , demography , environmental health , paleontology , sociology , biology
Objectives: To investigate the frequency of balance and proprioception deficitsin elderly population of old homes of Twin cities of Pakistan and to find which lower limb joint ismost prone to proprioception loss. Study Design: Descriptive cross sectional design. Setting:Old homes of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Study Period: September 1st 2016 to 30th December2016. Material and Methods: A sample of 207 residents of old homes aged 60-85 years (mean69 ± 6.673) with 104 males (50.2%) and 103 females (49.8%) was recruited for this studyby Purposive, non-probability sampling technique. Short form 7-Item Berg Balance Scale,Romberg test, tandem walk test and forward reach test was used for balance assessment andJoint Position Matching tests was administered for proprioception. Data was analyzed on SPSSversion 20. Results: Dizziness was a common risk factor of falls (21%) and next was the visualimpairment (8.7%) in elderly population. Unmatched ratio in the Joint position matching wasthe highest in hip joints (R= 35.70%, L= 48.30%) irrespective of gender. Females had higherrisk of fall than males. Ceiling effect in the scores of 7-item BBS was mostly noted in males.Conclusion: The study revealed that the frequency of balance problems amongst our elderlypopulation is high with women being more vulnerable to fall risk. The most proprioception losswas observed in left lower limb and the joint affected was the hip joint.