Effects of a 12-week Tai Chi program on postural stability and gait biomechanics in prefrail older adults: a randomized controlled study.

The study was single centre and analysed 64 participants, so it had limited power for joint-specific kinematic outcomes and exploratory correlations. Participants had to walk independently without assistive devices and have a Berg Balance Scale score above 40, so the findings do not apply to people with more severe balance loss or device-dependent walking. There was no long-term follow-up and no post-intervention reassessment of Fried Frailty Phenotype status, so the study cannot show whether prefrailty reversed or whether gains lasted. Tai Chi was delivered by one experienced instructor, so instructor-specific effects cannot be separated. Home practice time was not recorded, so total practice dose and dose-response relationships were not quantified. Adverse events were recorded by observation and participant reporting, not a standardized checklist or diary, so minor discomfort such as soreness or fatigue may not be captured. No validated minimal clinically important differences for prefrail older adults were available for Timed Up-and-Go, Berg Balance Scale, center-of-pressure measures, Gait Profile Score, or Gait Deviation Index, so the practical size of change is uncertain. Several joint-specific kinematic findings and all correlation findings did not remain significant after false discovery rate correction.

Funding was provided by Key Project of Science and Technology Program of Traditional Chinese Medicine of Fujian Province, Key Discipline Construction Program of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Fujian Province, and Joint funds for the innovation of science and Technology of Fujian province. The supplied text does not report an author conflict-of-interest declaration.

Do not conclude that Tai Chi alone caused the improvements. The intervention group received Tai Chi plus health education, while the control group received health education alone. This design cannot show the effect of Tai Chi without health education.