TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2020//
TI  - The effects of physical exercise on balance and prevention of falls in older people: a systematic review and meta-analysis
JO  - Journal of clinical medicine
A1  - Papalia, Giuseppe Francesco
A1  - Papalia, Rocco
A1  - Diaz Balzani, Lorenzo Alirio
A1  - Torre, Guglielmo
A1  - Zampogna, Biagio
A1  - Vasta, Sebastiano
A1  - Fossati, Chiara
A1  - Alifano, Anna Maria
A1  - Denaro, Vincenzo
SP  - e2595
EP  - e2595
VL  - 9
IS  - 8
N2  - The aims of this systematic review and meta-analysis were to evaluate the effects of physical exercise on static and dynamic balance in the elderly population, and to analyze the number of falls and fallers. A systematic literature search was conducted using PubMed-Medline, Cochrane Central, and Google Scholar to select randomized clinical trials that analyzed the role of exercise on balance and fall rate in patients aged 65 or older. Sixteen articles were included in this review. Applying the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool, three studies were determined to be at low risk of bias, nine at unclear risk of bias, and four at high risk of bias. The meta-analysis showed improvements in dynamic balance (p = 0.008), static balance (p = 0.01), participants' fear of falling (p = 0.10), balance confidence (p = 0.04), quality of life (p = 0.08), and physical performance (p = 0.30) in patients who underwent physical exercise compared to controls. The analysis of the total numbers of falls showed a decreased likelihood of falls in patients who participated in exercise programs (p = 0.0008). Finally, the number of patients who fell at least once was significantly reduced in the intervention group (p = 0.02). Physical exercise is an effective treatment to improve balance and reduce fall rates in the elderly.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2077-0383
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jcm9082595
ID  - ref1
ER  -