STABILITY PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT AMONG SUBJECTS OF DISPARATE BALANCING ABILITIES
1999; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 31; Issue: Supplement Linguagem: Inglês
10.1097/00005768-199905001-01209
ISSN1530-0315
AutoresJoan A. Finn, Matias Monsalvez Álvarez, Ruth E. Jett, Robert S. Axtell, David S. Kemler,
Resumo1212 Previous studies have repeatedly demonstrated that poor balance is a risk factor for falls among elderly subjects. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a balance stability system (BSS) in identifying subjects with disparate dynamic balance abilities. Subjects were men and women (N=200) ranging in age from 18-89 yrs. After a brief warm-up and practice on the movable platform, subjects completed five, 20 sec. BBS trials. Average balance index was calculated from the middle three scores. Subjects age 50 and older completed the six item Guralnik Functional test. Stepwise discriminant function and MANOVA analyses identified differences between gender and among age and stability groups. Males (N=106) were less stable than females (N=94) =2.70±0.08 and =1.94±0.80, (P<.05), respectively. Young subjects were more stable than older subjects. Each age group was different (Table 1). Four disparate balance groups were identified (Table 2).Table 1: Stability Index Differences among Age Groups (Mean±S.D.) Table 2: Stability Index Differences among Balance Groups (Mean±S.D.) Guralnik variables of single leg stand left, single leg stand right, and speed walk identified 0.40 of the variance in subject's stability score.
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