A study design to investigate the effect of intense Tai Chi in reducing falls among older adults transitioning to frailty.
This paper describes the study design, methodological considerations, and baseline characteristics of a clinical trial to determine if intense (48 weeks, twice per week) Tai Chi practice can reduce the frequency of falls among older adults transitioning to frailty compared to a wellness education program. Twenty facilities will be stratified on socioeconomic status and facility type and randomly assigned to one of the two interventions. Secondary outcome measurements include variables related to function, behavior, and the biomechanics of movement. This study is unique because it represents an effort to offer a novel physical intervention to a large sample of transitional frail adults, a population that has received few formal exercise interventions. In addition to bringing the interventions into facilities, a 1-year follow-up is also included to assess rates of change in outcome measurements.
Wolf
S L
SL
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, 1441 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA. swolf@emory.edu
Sattin
R W
RW
O'Grady
M
M
Freret
N
N
Ricci
L
L
Greenspan
A I
AI
Xu
T
T
Kutner
M
M
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D005845:Georgia; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic; D010560:Personnel Selection / Q000379:methods*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D012107:Research Design; D026302:Tai Ji