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Effect of a Hyperkyphosis-specific Exercise Program on the History of Falls, Fear of Falling and Satisfaction in Older People with Hyperkyphosis: A Pilot Study
Josette Bettany-Saltikov2
Paul Van Schaik3
Gok Kandasamy2
Authors Info & Affiliations
Abstract
Background:
Hyperkyphosis, an excessive curvature of the upper back, has been linked to increased falls and fear of falling. Previous work has focused on improving the hyperkyphosis curve itself. There is, however, a dearth of studies that have focused on improving falls, fear of falling, and participants’ satisfaction with the educational material.
Objective:
This study aimed to determine the effect of a hyperkyphotic-specific exercise programme on falling, fear of falling, and satisfaction with the educational material.
Methods:
Thirteen individuals with a hyperkyphosis of over 40 degrees were randomly divided into an exercise group (n=6; age: 71.50 ± 7.84 years) and a control group (n=7; age: 67.29 ± 9.76 years). The exercise group received a 16-week hyperkyphosis-specific exercise programme with educational material. The control group received only the educational material. Before and after the exercise programme, the history of falls in the past year and fear of falling were assessed by 2 questionnaires (the history of falls in the past year and the Fall Efficacy Scale-International). Satisfaction with the educational material was evaluated after the exercise programme. Data were analysed by descriptive statistics and a 2×2 model mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance.
Results:
There was no significant interaction between group and time for the history of falls in the past year (p = .182, effect size = .156) and fear of falling (p = .216, effect size = .135), but the effect size of the interaction effect was large. Furthermore, participants in both groups expressed positive satisfaction with the educational material.
Conclusion:
Hyperkyphosis-specific exercise programme resulted in improvement in the history of falls and fear of falling, but the results were not significant. A larger randomised controlled trial is needed to clarify the effectiveness of the exercise programme in reducing the number of falls and fear of falling in this population.
