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Geriatrics research

Everything we have read on geriatrics. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

1,442 PAPERS · PAGE 10 OF 29 · NEWEST FIRST

• PTOTCohort2017Change in hand dexterity and habitual gait speed reflects cognitive decline over time in healthy older adults: a longitudinal study.Journal of physical therapy scienceChanges in 5-m habitual walking time and peg-moving task time were significantly associated with changes in cognitive test scores over three years in healthy older adults. This observational finding cannot show that either change causes the other.
• PTOTOther2017Lateral Perturbation-Induced Stepping: Strategies and Predictors in Persons Poststroke.Journal of neurologic physical therapy : JNPTWhen pushed sideways, people with chronic stroke rarely stepped with their weak leg. They mostly used their strong leg and took multiple steps. Poor sensation in the weak foot made them avoid using it. This suggests therapy should target stepping with the affected side.
• PTCohort2017Functional reach of older adults: normative reference values based on new and published data.PhysiotherapyFunctional reach in older adults averaged 27.2 cm across 7535 participants. Single study means ranged from 17.8 to 36.8 cm. Use the combined values, not one study's mean, to judge a patient's standing reach.
• PTOTOther2017Maximum Step Length Test Performance in People With Parkinson Disease: A Cross-sectional Study.Journal of neurologic physical therapy : JNPTPeople with Parkinson disease step significantly shorter backward than forward or sideways. Medication improves step length slightly, but the change is too small to be clinically meaningful. The test correlates strongly with balance and walking endurance measures.
• PTOTCohort2017A modified seated side tapping test in which the arms are crossed also reflects gait function in community-dwelling elderly.Journal of physical therapy scienceA seated test where elderly people cross their arms and tap shoulder pads correlates with walking speed and Timed Up and Go scores. This suggests trunk control, not arm strength, drives the link between seated tapping tasks and gait function.
• PTOther2017The effects of ratio in the multifidus muscle thickness according to various angle of mediolateral ramp during double stance.Journal of physical therapy scienceHealthy young men standing on a mediolateral ramp showed left/right multifidus muscle thickness differences at 10°, 15°, and 20°. At 5° the left/right difference was similar to flat ground. This was a small standing study, not a treatment test.
• PTMeta-Analysis2017Effectiveness of resistance exercise using elastic bands on flexibility and balance among the elderly people living in the community: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of physical therapy scienceElastic band resistance exercise increased functional reach and one-leg standing in community-dwelling older adults, but did not improve Timed Up and Go. It can be used for balance training, not as a tested way to prevent falls.
• PTRCT2017Efficacy of ankle control balance training on postural balance and gait ability in community-dwelling older adults: a single-blinded, randomized clinical trial.Journal of physical therapy scienceOlder adults who did ankle control balance training plus fall-prevention education improved one-leg standing and walking tests more than the control group. The trial did not measure falls, so it shows better balance and gait, not proven fall prevention.
• PTRCT2017Effects of augmented reality-based Otago exercise on balance, gait, and physical factors in elderly women to prevent falls: a randomized controlled trial.Journal of physical therapy scienceElderly women doing augmented reality Otago exercise for 12 weeks improved balance and fall confidence more than yoga or self-Otago, while leg strength improved in all groups.
• PTOTCohort2017The relationship between ground reaction force in sit-to-stand movement and lower extremity function in community-dwelling Japanese older adults using long-term care insurance services.Journal of physical therapy scienceLetting frail older adults place their hands on the chair seat during sit-to-stand allowed 52 of 53 to complete the test, compared with 39 of 53 when arms were crossed. Ground reaction force measures from this method correlated with walking and balance speed, offering a feasible single-repetition assessment.
• PTOther2018Analysis of biases in dynamic margins of stability introduced by the use of simplified center of mass estimates during walking and turning.Gait & postureUsing fewer body markers to estimate the body's center of mass biased a dynamic balance measure during walking and turning, especially spin turns. The study involved 12 healthy young adults, not patients.
• PTOther2017Elderly-customized hatha yoga effects on the vascular inflammation factors of elderly women.Journal of physical therapy scienceSeven women aged 70 to 80 who did low-intensity hatha yoga for 10 weeks had higher albumin and lower fibrinogen, hs-CRP and ESR blood markers after the program. Seven control women had no reported changes. Only seven were in each group.
• PTOTOther2017Disability in older adults with acute low back pain: the study Back Complaints in the Elderly - (Brazil).Brazilian journal of physical therapyIn older adults with acute low back pain, pain intensity was not associated with disability. The oldest old did daily activities less often, and oldest old living with a partner did personal activities less often than those living alone.
• PTMeta-Analysis2017Do Exercise Interventions Improve Participation in Life Roles in Older Adults? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Physical therapyExercise did not improve participation in life roles for older adults in 16 pooled trials. Programs lasting 12 months or longer showed a small favorable effect, but overall there was no effect.
• PTOther2018Strategies adopted by younger and older adults while operating a non-pedal tricycle.Brazilian journal of physical therapyHealthy older adults could propel a non-pedal tricycle on a straight path at a comfortable speed. They used more steps per minute and longer ground contact than younger adults, with more hip and less knee movement.
• PTOther2017Large calf circumference indicates non-sarcopenia despite body mass.Journal of physical therapy scienceA dominant-leg calf circumference above 32.8 cm usually meant non-sarcopenia, but a smaller calf did not reliably mean sarcopenia, especially in thin or normal-weight women.
• PTOTSLPCohort2017Predictive Indices for Functional Improvement and Deterioration, Institutionalization, and Death Among Elderly Medicare Beneficiaries.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitationA new scoring system predicts which Medicare patients aged 65 or older will deteriorate, be institutionalized, or die within two years. It identifies risk factors like advanced age, living alone, and vision impairment to help clinicians plan care and prevent poor outcomes.
• PTOTOther2017Effects of single and dual tasks during walking on spatiotemporal gait parameters of community-dwelling older.Journal of physical therapy scienceWalking while carrying a cup with the elbow bent at 90 degrees reduced walking speed and shortened steps in healthy older adults. The change was largest in people aged 80 to 84. Carrying something while walking may be harder than walking alone.
• PTOther2017The effects of aging on the subjective vertical in the frontal plane in healthy adults.Journal of physical therapy scienceAverage perceived vertical tilt did not differ between healthy younger and older adults. Older adults were less consistent judging postural vertical, and their tilt followed the starting side more strongly.
• PTOTPilot2017Effects of silver gymnastic exercises on aging-related hormones in elderly women living alone.Journal of physical therapy scienceTwelve weeks of group gymnastics raised growth hormone and estrogen levels in twenty elderly women living alone. Because there was no control group and the study was small, this shows a change in blood markers, not that the exercises prevent disease or reverse aging.
• PTOther2017The Korean version of relative and absolute reliability of gait and balance assessment tools for patients with dementia in day care center and nursing home.Journal of physical therapy scienceFor older adults with dementia in day care centers or nursing homes, the Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up and Go and Groningen Meander Walking Test gave stable scores across examiners and repeat testing. The four-meter walk was less dependable.
• PTOTQualitative2018Patient-centered mobility outcome preferences according to individuals with stroke and caregivers: a qualitative analysis.Disability and rehabilitationStroke survivors often prioritized walking independently. Caregivers often prioritized safety, falls, home changes, driving, and realistic mobility prognosis. Ask each person and caregiver before choosing mobility goals.
• PTCohort2017Changes in fatigue and physical function with age for patients with gastrointestinal cancer in the perioperative period: a comparison between older and young patients.Journal of physical therapy scienceOlder and younger gastrointestinal cancer patients had similar fatigue around surgery, but younger patients walked farther after discharge. Both groups walked less after surgery than before.
• PTOTOther2017Effect of pain on fear of falling in patients with femoral proximal fracture.Journal of physical therapy scienceFour weeks after surgery for femoral proximal fracture, age and higher pain intensity were linked to lower confidence about avoiding falls. Walking, balance and daily independence did not differ across confidence groups, so pain is worth asking about.
• PTOTCohort2018Timed mobility: description of measurement, performance, and dimensionality among older adults.Disability and rehabilitationTimes for five everyday mobility tasks in 189 adults over 75 were related enough to look like one mobility construct. If a patient rises or walks quickly, other timed tasks often are quicker too.
• PTOTCohort2018The association of discharge destination with 30-day rehospitalization rates among older adults receiving lumbar spinal fusion surgery.Musculoskeletal science & practiceOlder adults discharged to rehabilitation services after spinal fusion had higher 30-day readmission rates than those discharged home. This likely reflects sicker, more complex patients needing skilled care, not harm from the therapy itself. Clinicians should expect higher medical instability in this group.
• PTOTOther2018The effects of a client-centered leisure activity program on satisfaction, self-esteem, and depression in elderly residents of a long-term care facility.Journal of physical therapy scienceResidents who received usual activities plus chosen individual leisure activities and elastic-band group exercise showed better performance and satisfaction, higher self-esteem, lower depression, and better upper-limb function. In the control group, upper-limb, self-esteem, and depression outcomes did not change significantly.
• PTOTOther2018Age-dependent changes in dynamic standing-balance ability evaluated quantitatively using a stabilometer.Journal of physical therapy scienceDynamic standing balance declines with age, dropping sharply after 60. A new stabilometer index tracks this decline without hitting a ceiling, offering age-specific reference values for assessing balance in healthy adults.
• PTOTCohort2018Patient reported outcomes in GNE myopathy: incorporating a valid assessment of physical function in a rare disease.Disability and rehabilitationThree patient-reported function measures were usable and stable in 35 people with GNE myopathy, but they did not separate low from moderate impairment and may not fit advanced disease.
• PTOTOther2017Relationship Between Head-Turn Gait Speed and Lateral Balance Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationOlder adults with poor lateral balance slowed down significantly more when turning their heads while walking than when looking forward. Head-turn gait speed was the strongest predictor of lateral balance stability, suggesting this simple observation may help identify fall risk.
• PTOther2018Enhancement of a prosthetic knee with a microprocessor-controlled gait phase switch reduces falls and improves balance confidence and gait speed in community ambulators with unilateral transfemoral amputation.Prosthetics and orthotics internationalFall risk tests did not show a difference, but self-reported falls decreased by 77% in the 12 analyzed after an extreme outlier was excluded. Walking distance and balance confidence also improved with the microprocessor-enhanced knee.
• PTOther2018Identifying elderly people at risk for cognitive decline by using the 2-step test.Journal of physical therapy scienceElderly people with poorer 2-step test results were more likely to have cognitive decline, but many in those groups did not have decline and some with normal results did. Do not use it alone to identify cognitive decline.
• PTOTSLPOther2018Changes in thickness of the transversus abdominis during the abdominal drawing-in manoeuvre and expiratory muscle training in elderly people.Journal of physical therapy scienceExpiratory muscle training thickened the deep abdominal muscle more than the standard drawing-in maneuver in elderly people. Both exercises increased thickness compared to rest, but expiratory training produced a greater effect. This suggests breathing against resistance may be an easier way to target deep abdominal muscles in older adults.
• PTSurvey2018Effect of musculoskeletal pain of care workers on job satisfaction.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn 87 care workers, more musculoskeletal pain, especially lower back and shoulder pain, was associated with lower professional, job-performance, and relationship satisfaction. This survey shows association, not proof pain caused lower satisfaction.
• PTOther2018The relationships between cognitive function and hearing loss among the elderly.Journal of physical therapy scienceRight-ear hearing loss was linked to cognitive function in 82 elderly people, while age was not linked to cognitive function. This is an association, not proof of cause.
• PTOther2018Does local dynamic stability during unperturbed walking predict the response to balance perturbations? An examination across age and falls history.Gait & postureWalking stability in older adults did not predict how much sideways visual disturbances disturbed them. Only young adults showed a relation, opposite to expectation. Older fallers responded similarly regardless of baseline stability.
• PTOTOther2018Could Activity Modifications Indicate Physical Decline Among Adults With Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis?American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationAdults with knee OA who changed how or how often they walked, without feeling limited, had more pain, poorer function, worse global health and poorer balance than those who changed nothing. People who changed stair climbing without feeling limited also walked less in 6 minutes.
• PTOther2018Can higher training practice dosage with treadmill slip-perturbation necessarily reduce risk of falls following overground slip?Gait & posture40 treadmill slips did not improve immediate fall resistance more than 24 slips. Both training groups were less likely to fall or lose balance than controls, so extra slips did not add benefit.
• PTOTCohort2018Dynamic stability during split-belt walking and the relationship with step length symmetry.Gait & postureHealthy adults became less stable and less symmetrical when walking on split-belt treadmills. Anterior-posterior stability and symmetry improved together over 15 minutes, but side-to-side stability did not recover. Higher baseline stability predicted better symmetry during the perturbation.
• PTOTSLPCohort2018Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations.Gait & postureOlder adults did not scale their hip, knee, and ankle joint adjustments to increasing visual perturbations, unlike younger adults. They showed disproportionately large variability even at the smallest disturbance, suggesting a saturated or misgraded balance response.
• PTOTCohort2018Association between knee extensor strength and pulmonary function in the female elderly.Journal of physical therapy scienceKnee extensor strength correlates with lung capacity in older women, explaining about a third of the variance in vital capacity. Stronger legs are associated with better breathing, but the cross-sectional design cannot prove that leg exercises improve lung function.
• PTOther2018Effects of elastic band exercises on physical ability and muscular topography of elderlyfemales.Journal of physical therapy scienceThe two elastic band exercise types did not differ in older women. Static and dynamic programs both improved leg power, balance, sit-to-stand and body contour scores, but the study had no control group.
• PTOTQualitative2018Falls in people with multiple sclerosis: experiences of 115 fall situations.Clinical rehabilitationPeople with multiple sclerosis described falls as happening indoors during everyday tasks, often when MS symptoms fluctuated, fatigue or distraction reduced attention. Walking aids were often involved, sometimes used as usual but not enough support, and sometimes not used as intended.
• PTOther2018Effects of expiratory muscle training on the frail elderly's respiratory function.Journal of physical therapy scienceAfter three months of expiratory muscle training, 29 frail elderly day-care users showed small increases in vital capacity and peak expiratory flow, while other breathing measures did not show the same change. The study had no control group.
• PTOther2017A Scoping Review of Health Disparities in Autism Spectrum Disorder.Journal of autism and developmental disordersParents of African American or Latino children with autism often reported poorer access to general medical care. Girls and women were more likely to report psychiatric or emergency service use, and rural children used emergency care more. Physical health outcomes were not studied.
• PTCohort2018Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Falls in Well-Functioning Older Adults: Findings From the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationOverall activity levels did not differ between fallers and non-fallers. However, people who fell during routine tasks were less active than those who fell during risky tasks, particularly in the afternoon and evening. Poor balance was linked to lower activity levels during these times.
• PTPilot2018Effects of Fatigue on Balance in Individuals With Parkinson Disease: Influence of Medication and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Genotype.Journal of neurologic physical therapy : JNPTIn 27 people with Parkinson disease, treadmill fatigue did not produce measurable worsening of balance or gait. Medication state and BDNF genotype did not change that result. Timed Up and Go scores changed after testing.
• PTOther2018Impaired set shifting is associated with previous falls in individuals with and without Parkinson's disease.Gait & posturePoorer set shifting on a simple paper test was linked to previous falls in 138 adults with and without Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's and freezing had stronger links, and the set-shifting link did not clearly differ by group.
• PTOther2018Relationship between advanced glycation end-product accumulation in the skin and pulmonary function.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn older adults with normal spirometry, higher skin AGE buildup and more pack-years were linked to lower FEV1/FVC. In younger adults, skin AGE buildup was not linked to FEV1/FVC. This is an association, not proof of cause.
• PTPilot2017Configurable, wearable sensing and vibrotactile feedback system for real-time postural balance and gait training: proof-of-concept.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationHealthy older adults used a small wearable vibration system to reduce trunk sway during balance exercises and change toe-in or toe-out walking angles in a single session. This shows feasibility, not treatment benefit.