Home-based video exercise intervention for community-dwelling frail older women: a randomized controlled trial.
OBJECTIVE
Home-based exercise is a viable solution for frail elderly individuals with difficulties in reaching exercise facilities outside home. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a home-based video exercise program on physiological performance, functional capacity and health-related quality of life.


METHODS
Community-dwelling frail women > or = 75 yrs, receiving public home care, were randomized into a training group (n=30) and a control group (n=31). Participants exercised for 26 minutes, three times per week for five months. Both groups received a bi-weekly telephone call. The effect of intervention was evaluated by the physical performance test, mobility-tiredness score, maximal isometric handgrip and biceps strength, lower limb explosive power, repeated chair rise (5 times), 10-m maximal walking-speed, semi-tandem balance, and health-related quality of life, as measured by EQ-5D and self-rated health.


RESULTS
Twenty-five participants (83%) in the training group and 28 (90%) in the control group completed the project. Adherence to the training protocol was on average 89.2%. At follow-up, between-group analysis revealed a significant difference only in EQ-5D (valued by time-trade-off tariffs), resulting from a significant decrease observed in the control group and a trend towards an increase in the training group (p=0.082). Significant within-group improvements, ranging from 8-35%, were also observed for the physical performance test, mobility-tiredness score, handgrip, biceps strength, chair rise, and 10-m maximal walking-speed in the training group, and for walking-speed and self-rated health in the control group.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that home-based training for frail older women using an exercise video induces lasting health-related quality-of-life (EQ- 5D). In addition, a tendency towards improvements in physiological performance and functional capacity was observed.
Vestergaard
Sonja
S
Centre of Applied and Clinical Exercise Sciences, Institute of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark. vestergaards@mail.nih.gov
Kronborg
Christian
C
Puggaard
Lis
L
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003718:Denmark; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D016852:Housing for the Elderly; D006801:Humans; D010806:Physical Education and Training; D011788:Quality of Life; D055070:Resistance Training; D014741:Video Recording