Comparison of Specific Balance Exercises at Home on Balance and Gait Performance of Healthy Elderly Men

Deficiency in balance and subsequent gait disorders in Old age is one of the main problems of the elderly, so the design of sports exercises to improve balance and gait is very necessary. The main purpose of this study was to compare two types of specific and comprehensive balance exercises at home to improve balance and gait in healthy young elderly.

In the present quasi-experimental study, 40 healthy elderly people between the ages of 60 and 75 years were randomly assigned to one of the groups of specific, comprehensive and control balance exercises. In the specific group, the exercises were based on the assessment of balance component disorders and the exercises of the comprehensive group were based on the assessment of balance component disorders in them. The duration of the study was ten weeks and three sessions per week. Balance disorders were assessed by BES test and TUG test, walking speed and functional gait were measured before and after exercise and one month of follow-up. Data were analyzed using repeated measures test at a significance level of P≤0.5 were analyzed.

Applying specific and comprehensive balance exercises had a significant effect and significant improvement in TUG test, walking speed and functional gait in the two experimental groups compared to the control group in two stages of post-test and one-month follow-up (p <0.05). Also, by examining the progress percentage scores among the two experimental groups in all research variables, there was an advantage over the specific balance exercises group at home.

In general, specific and comprehensive balance home based exercise improves balance and gait in older men is healthy. Examining and evaluating the components of balance and its disorders can be helpful in choosing the type of exercise and further studies are necessary to achieve definitive results.