The effect of tai chi on knee osteoarthritis pain in cognitively impaired elders: pilot study.
This article reports a pilot study of the effect of tai chi (TC), a pharmacological adjunct and mild aerobic exercise, on osteoarthritic knee pain in elders with cognitive impairment (CI). The TC program included a warm-up, 12-form Sun-style TC, and a cool-down period, for a total of 20-40 minutes per session, twice a week for 15 weeks. The results showed no significant differences in knee pain after the TC intervention in 7 elders with CI. However, more minutes of TC attendance were related to improved pain scores (Spearman's rho=.78, P < .05). Greater accuracy in TC performance was also correlated with improvements in pain scores (Spearman's rho = .70, P=.08). Of 4 elders who participated in TC practice regularly (more than 20 sessions), 3 showed clinically important improvements, but 3 elders who participated in no sessions or only a few sessions showed no improvement.
College of Nursing, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
Pao-Feng
PF
Tsai
Cornelia
C
Beck
Jason Y
JY
Chang
Jody
J
Hagen
Yong-Fang
YF
Kuo
Paula K
PK
Roberson
Karl
K
Rosengren
Linda
L
Beuscher
Catherine L
CL
Doan
K J S
KJ
Anand
D000368:Aged; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D026302:Tai Ji / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome