Efficiency of Physical Activity on the Physical Condition of Elderly Women

Effects of an Adapted Physical Activity Program on the Physical Condition of Elderly Women: an Analysis of Efficiency

The purpose of this study was to identify the effects and the efficiency of an adapted physical activity program as regards the physical condition of older Brazilian women.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Aging
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Physical activity program

Detailed Description

Although physical activity programs for the elderly have proved to be able to curb harmful changes due to ageing, not all programs show the same effectiveness, even though they are generally regarded as being effective. The existence of a wide variety of programs calls for debate about their outcomes.

Specific research tools and designs can assist in identifying not only program effectiveness but also program efficiency and use in terms of a better physical performance of subjects on carrying out exercises with less effort, influenced by multiple factors, one of them being adherence to the program. These analyses allow the influence of efficiency and the factors that determine it or are associated with it to be tested, and can provide classifications and subgroups to which interventions should be adapted if they are to offer the best service to them in the short and medium term.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 120
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Brazil
  • Sao Paulo
    • Sao Carlos, Sao Paulo, Brazil, 13.565-905
      • Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 60 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 60 or more years
• participants of an Adult Revitalization Program in São Carlos (São Paulo State - Brazil)

Exclusion Criteria:

• physical characteristics and previous health problems that might hinder their participation in the program activities.
• adherence to the program sessions lower than 75%.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: Physical activity program Group; The physical activity program consists of 123 sessions over 52 weeks. The initial assessment is followed by 12 weeks of physical activity. After this ten-week period, a second assessment is performed, followed by 3 weeks of rest. This is followed by a further 17 weeks of activities, 4 weeks of activities followed by 4 weeks of rest. Finally, there were 12 more weeks of activities.

Other: Physical activity program; The activities are done in groups of no more than 25 individuals; these activities are standardized and agreed upon by the research team, which hold monthly meetings to conduct the study. Each physical activity session consists of 8-10 minutes of exercises aimed at stretching the major muscle groups (pectoral muscles, latissimus dorsi, cervical paravertebral, and posterior and anterior thigh muscles); 9 minutes of aerobic endurance activity (march/fast walk); 7-10 minutes of adapted strength exercises, power, and endurance training; 14-16 minutes of coordination, agility, and flexibility exercises, and 5-7 minutes of respiratory and relaxation exercises.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Efficiency Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)	Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is a test of operational investigation It was used to determine the relative efficiency of the older women, considered Decision Making Units (DMU). This analysis supports the hypothesis that the outputs do not need to be proportional to the inputs.	1 year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Grip strength	Grip strength was measured using a Sammons Preston Swedley-Type hand dynamometer (Jamar® Bolingbrook IL, 60440). The test was performed three times on the dominant upper limb at 10-second intervals between each run. The grip strength assigned to each participant was the highest of the three values measured. Subjects were guided to hold the grip meter during exhalation without performing the Valsalva maneuver; they were encouraged verbally throughout the test.	1 year
Sit-and-Reach Test	The Sit-and-Reach Test was employed to evaluate the participants' flexibility of the posterior trunk and lower limbs. The movement was performed three times. The flexibility assigned to subjects was the highest value measured.	1 year
Static balance	Static balance was verified by the One-Leg Stance Test with eyes open31. The subjects gazed at a fixed point two meters away for no more than 30 seconds, with one leg bent at the knee. The test was done three times with open and closed eyes and for both legs, taking into account for each condition (open or closed eyes) the mean value of the measures.	1 year
Dynamic balance	Dynamic balance was evaluated by the Maximum Gait Velocity (MGV). The subjects were instructed to walk along a 33.3cm-wide and 3.33m-long band painted on the floor in the shortest possible time. The test was performed three times. The dynamic balance value assigned to each subject was the mean time walking along the band.	1 year
VO2max	The Rockport 1-Mile Walk Test was used to determine the subjects' physical condition estimated by the VO2max	1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: José R. Rebelatto, Ph.D., Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Vogel T, Brechat PH, Lepretre PM, Kaltenbach G, Berthel M, Lonsdorfer J. Health benefits of physical activity in older patients: a review. Int J Clin Pract. 2009 Feb;63(2):303-20. doi: 10.1111/j.1742-1241.2008.01957.x.
• Gillespie LD, Robertson MC, Gillespie WJ, Lamb SE, Gates S, Cumming RG, Rowe BH. Interventions for preventing falls in older people living in the community. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2009 Apr 15;(2):CD007146. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD007146.pub2.
• Conn VS, Minor MA, Burks KJ, Rantz MJ, Pomeroy SH. Integrative review of physical activity intervention research with aging adults. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2003 Aug;51(8):1159-68. doi: 10.1046/j.1532-5415.2003.51365.x.
• Laine J, Finne-Soveri UH, Bjorkgren M, Linna M, Noro A, Hakkinen U. The association between quality of care and technical efficiency in long-term care. Int J Qual Health Care. 2005 Jun;17(3):259-67. doi: 10.1093/intqhc/mzi032. Epub 2005 Mar 23.
• Greve P, Wanderley FDS, Rebelatto JR. The effects of periodic interruptions of physical activities on the physical capacities of adult active women. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2009 Sep-Oct;49(2):268-271. doi: 10.1016/j.archger.2008.09.009. Epub 2008 Nov 6.
• Alburquerque-Sendin F, Barberio-Mariano E, Brandao-Santana N, Rebelatto DA, Rebelatto JR. Effects of an adapted physical activity program on the physical condition of elderly women: an analysis of efficiency. Rev Bras Fisioter. 2012 Jul-Aug;16(4):328-36. doi: 10.1590/s1413-35552012005000025. Epub 2012 Jun 14.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: April 1, 2010
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 1, 2011
• Study Completion (Actual): May 1, 2011

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 14, 2012
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 19, 2012
• First Posted (Estimate): March 20, 2012

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): March 20, 2012
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 19, 2012
• Last Verified: March 1, 2012

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: physical activity; elderly; women; efficiency
• Other Study ID Numbers: Ethics Committe UFSCar Nº104/4