Aerobic Exercise Sustains Performance of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living in Early-Stage Alzheimer Disease.
Eric D Vidoni, Jaime Perales, Mohammed Alshehri and 3 others
PMID 29286983WHAT IT FOUND
Aerobic exercise sustained independence in daily tasks such as cooking and housework in early Alzheimer disease, compared with stretching and toning.
Caregiving hours did not clearly change.
Key findings
01Aerobic exercise maintained functional independence, while the stretching and toning group lost 4% independence.
02Instrumental activities of daily living differed between groups: the aerobic group increased 1%, while the stretching and toning group lost 8%.
03Informal caregiving time did not differ between the aerobic exercise and stretching and toning groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
This was a secondary analysis of a pilot trial, not the original main analysis. The analysed sample was small and homogeneous, white and well-educated. Only people who completed baseline and week 26 testing were included. Functional independence was reported by study partners, so it is a caregiver estimate of independence. The exercise programs did not include task-specific training that may benefit individuals with dementia. Caregivers included spouses, children, grandchildren and siblings, which may affect comparability of caregiving time. The control group also received social engagement and physical activity, so the result compares two exercise programs rather than exercise versus usual care.
Declared interests
The authors declared no real or apparent conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that aerobic exercise reduces caregiver hours. The study found no difference in informal caregiving time between the aerobic exercise and stretching and toning groups.