TOPIC

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 18 OF 29 · NEWEST FIRST

• PTCohort2022Whole-Brain Metabolic Abnormalities Are Associated With Mobility in Older Adults With Multiple Sclerosis.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairOlder adults with MS had widespread brain metabolic changes linked to slower walking and less endurance. These abnormalities appeared in regions not traditionally tied to movement, suggesting mobility issues may stem from broader brain changes rather than isolated motor cortex damage.
• PTOTCohort2022Fear of falling avoidance behavior affects the inter-relationship between vision impairment and diminished mobility in community-dwelling older adults.Physiotherapy theory and practiceVision acuity scores did not predict mobility, but diagnosed eye disease and fear of falling avoidance did. Avoidance behavior partially explained why eye disease led to slower movement. Screen for eye disease and fear, not just acuity.
• PTOTSLPOther2022Kinematic synergies in over-ground slip recovery outcomes: Distinct strategies or a single strategy?Gait & postureSplit falls and recoveries use similar movement patterns before and during the initial slip response, but differ significantly in the late recovery phase. Feet-forward falls resemble recoveries until the final step. This suggests split fallers may need more intensive, multi-phase training than feet-forward fallers.
• PTOTOther2022Comparison of the Lower Extremity Kinematics and Center of Mass Variations in Sit-to-Stand and Stand-to-Sit Movements of Older Fallers and Nonfallers.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationOlder men with a history of falls showed significantly more side-to-side body sway and exaggerated trunk bending during sit-to-stand and stand-to-sit compared to non-fallers. These movement patterns were most unstable when sitting down, suggesting sit-to-stand and stand-to-sit are not simply opposite actions.
• PTOTQualitative2021Older Adults' Perceptions Regarding the Role of Physical Therapists in Fall Prevention: A Qualitative Investigation.Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001)Most older adults in this study did not know physical therapists can prevent falls. They viewed PTs as treating specific problems or injuries, not as a resource for prevention. Barriers included perceived lack of need, cost, and a belief that a doctor's prescription was required.
• PTOTSurveyPerceived Neighborhood Walkability is Associated with Recent Falls in Urban Dwelling Older Adults.Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001)Older adults who fell recently perceived it as harder to walk to stores and transit stops than those who did not fall. Therapists should ask about these specific access issues before prescribing outdoor walking, as perceived difficulty correlates with fall risk.
• PTOTPilot2022Blood Flow Restricted Walking in Elderly Individuals with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Feasibility Study.Journal of rehabilitation medicineNine of 14 older adults with knee arthritis completed 8–10 weeks of blood-flow-restricted walking, showing improved functional performance but no change in self-reported knee function. Five withdrew, mostly due to discomfort or pain. Adherence was high among completers.
• PTCohort2021Stakeholder and Data-Driven Fall Screen in a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly: Quality Improvement Initiative.Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001)In PACE participants, a Short Physical Performance Battery score of 1 to 7 flagged higher risk of falls and injurious falls than a score of 8 to 12. The screen was built with clinicians and embedded in routine assessments.
• PTOTSLPCohort2021Timed "Up & Go" Dual-Task Tests: Age- and Sex-Specific Reference Values and Test-Retest Reliability in Cognitively Healthy Controls.Physical therapyTimed Up & Go dual-task time scores are highly reliable, but verbal outputs and cost measures vary widely between tests. Use time scores for consistent monitoring. Do not rely on animal naming counts to track small changes or evaluate interventions.
• PTOther2021Faster or longer steps: Maintaining fast walking in older adults at risk for mobility disability.Gait & postureOlder adults who used shorter steps to walk fast had slower chair stands and more preferred-walk propulsion. Their fast step length was shorter than the longer-step group, but knee and ankle strength tests did not separate the groups.
• PTOTOther2021Is the dynamic gait index a useful outcome to measure balance and ambulation in patients with cerebellar ataxia?Gait & postureThe Dynamic Gait Index reliably and validly measures balance and walking in ambulatory adults with cerebellar ataxia. Scores from different therapists and repeated tests matched closely. This gives clinicians a standardized activity-level outcome for tracking progress in this population.
• PTOTRCT2022Fall arrest strategy training improves upper body response time compared to standard fall prevention exercise in older women: A randomized trial.Clinical rehabilitationAdding upper body fall-arrest training to standard exercise improved right-arm response speed in older women. Both groups improved balance and strength similarly, but only the fall-arrest group reacted faster to touch targets.
• PTOther2021Transcultural adaptation and validation of a French version of the University of California, Los Angeles geriatrics attitudes scale (UCLA-GAS-F).Archives of physiotherapyThe French version of the geriatrics attitudes scale gives stable results when students repeat it after a week. However, its individual questions do not work together well enough to produce a reliable total score. Do not use the total score for high-stakes decisions.
• PTProtocol2021Error-Manipulation Gait Training for Veterans With Nontraumatic Lower Limb Amputation: A Randomized Controlled Trial Protocol.Physical therapyThis is a protocol for a randomized controlled trial that has not yet been conducted. It describes the planned methods, including the participants, interventions, and outcomes, but reports no actual results. There is nothing here to change your practice on.
• PTOTOther2021Concurrent validity of the step time and walking speed obtained from the smartphone application CareCoaching in independent, community-dwelling older adults.Journal of physical therapy scienceA smartphone app accurately measured step time but overestimated walking speed in community-dwelling older adults. Step time agreement was excellent, while walking speed agreement was only moderate to good, with errors increasing as participants walked faster.
• PTOther2022A Novel Way of Measuring Dual-Task Interference: The Reliability and Construct Validity of the Dual-Task Effect Battery in Neurodegenerative Disease.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairA new dual-task battery was most consistent for combined motor and thinking decline. It separated Parkinson's and Alzheimer's groups from healthy adults, but not from each other.
• PTOTCase-Control2022Individuals with Higher Levels of Physical Activity after Stroke Show Comparable Patterns of Myelin to Healthy Older Adults.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairStroke survivors who were more physically active showed brain myelin patterns comparable to healthy older adults, unlike those with low activity levels. This suggests physical activity may protect against myelin asymmetry after stroke, independent of motor impairment or arm use differences.
• PTOTSLPQualitative2021Dementia in people with severe or profound intellectual (and multiple) disabilities: Focus group research into relevance, symptoms and training needs.Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARIDCarers and families of people with severe intellectual disabilities want a dementia diagnosis to explain behaviour and guide care choices. They identified subtle declines in daily activities like eating and dressing as key signs. Current training lacks specific guidance for this population.
• PTCohort2021Factors associated with balance impairments amongst stroke survivors in northern Benin: A cross-sectional study.The South African journal of physiotherapyIn 54 stroke survivors in Benin, 24.07% had balance impairments. Fewer physiotherapy sessions and greater disability severity were linked to worse balance. Age, sex and stroke type showed no significant association.
• PTOTSLPSystematic Review2022The neglected puzzle of dementia in people with severe/profound intellectual disabilities: A systematic literature review of observable symptoms.Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARIDDiagnosing dementia in severe intellectual disability requires watching for behaviour changes, not cognitive tests. Key signs include withdrawal, aggression, sleep issues, and loss of self-care skills. Standard cognitive assessments are often impossible due to low baseline function, so caregiver observation of these behavioural shifts is essential.
• PTOTPilot2021Identifying preventative measures against frailty, locomotive syndrome, and sarcopenia in young adults: a pilot study.Journal of physical therapy scienceMost healthy young adults in this pilot showed signs of pre-frailty or low muscle mass, but very few had actual sarcopenia or severe mobility loss. The findings suggest monitoring muscle mass early, though the small, young sample limits broad application.
• PTOTOther2021Correlation between community balance and mobility scale (CB&M) with a battery of outcome measures to assess balance in Parkinson's disease - a cross-sectional study.Archives of physiotherapyIn Parkinson's, the CB&M correlated strongly with standard balance tests but exposed deficits they missed. The Berg Scale hit a ceiling, masking risk in early stages. Use CB&M to catch subtle, community-level balance problems before falls occur.
• PTOTSurvey2021Influences of remote exercise training for community-dwelling older adults in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of physical therapy scienceMost older adults reported less exercise during Japan's state of emergency. In the small group who completed two weeks of remote DVD exercises, self-reported effort dropped significantly. This suggests home-based video guidance can make movement feel easier for motivated, healthy seniors.
• PTOTNarrative Review2022Applications of Digital Health Technologies in Knee Osteoarthritis: Narrative Review.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesDigital tools like apps and video calls often match in-person therapy for pain and function in knee osteoarthritis and replacement. Blended care with real-time feedback and clinician contact appears more effective than self-directed websites alone.
• PTOther2022Impact of strength and balance on Functional Gait Assessment performance in older adults.Gait & postureOlder adults with stronger knee extensors and steadier standing balance scored better on the Functional Gait Assessment, especially on obstacle and stair tasks. Weight-shifting balance was not related to overall gait-test scores.
• PTOTCohort2022Investigating the underlying biomechanical mechanisms leading to falls in long-term ankle-foot orthosis and functional electrical stimulator users with chronic stroke.Gait & postureLong-term AFO and FES users with chronic stroke fell significantly more often than non-users during simulated trips. Wearing or removing the device made no difference to fall rates. The users' high fall risk stems from impaired trunk control and an inability to take a second step with the paretic leg.
• PTOTRCT2022Wearable airbag technology and machine learned models to mitigate falls after stroke.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationA fall detection algorithm trained on stroke survivors' movements detected more falls than one trained on healthy controls. This suggests commercial airbag devices, which often use general population data, may miss falls in stroke patients because their movement patterns are different.
• PTProtocol2022Development of a Coaching Protocol to Enhance Self-efficacy Within Outpatient Physical Therapy.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationNo clinical outcomes are reported. The paper describes developing a coaching protocol for physical therapists to integrate behavioral change tools into exercise programs. Initial feedback from 16 participants suggested the tools were useful, but efficacy is untested.
• PTOTSystematic Review2022Use of activPAL to Measure Physical Activity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Systematic Review.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationThe activPAL thigh monitor reliably measures walking, step count, and sitting time in older adults, but it is inaccurate for moderate-to-vigorous activity. Use it to track low-intensity movement and sedentary behavior. Use a different device, such as a wrist-worn accelerometer, if you need to measure exercise intensity.
• PTCohort2022Impact of Hearing Aid Use on Falls and Falls-Related Injury: Results From the Health and Retirement Study.Ear and hearingIn older adults, hearing aid use did not appear to change the link between self-reported hearing difficulty and falls or falls-related injury. Hearing difficulty itself was linked to more reported falls.
• PTOTOther2022Brain white matter correlates of learning ankle tracking using a wearable device: importance of the superior longitudinal fasciculus II.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationFive days of tracking practice with a wearable sensor improved ankle accuracy in healthy middle-aged and older adults. Better performance was linked to increased integrity of one specific brain pathway, the right superior longitudinal fasciculus II, suggesting this tract supports learning complex foot movements.
• PTOTSurvey2022Risk Factors Associated With Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Wheelchair Users With Spinal Cord Injury.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationWheelchair users with spinal cord injury were more likely to report falls if their injury was more recent or if they had better mobility scores. Better physical quality of life was linked to fewer fall injuries.
• PTOTSLPNarrative Review2021Mechanisms of Aminoglycoside- and Cisplatin-Induced Ototoxicity.American journal of audiologyAminoglycosides and cisplatin enter inner ear hair cells through specific ion channels, causing permanent hearing and balance loss. Inflammation, noise exposure, and certain co-administered drugs significantly worsen this damage. Clinicians should monitor high-risk patients closely during and after treatment.
• PTOTSLPCohort2021The prevalence and incidence of early-onset dementia among adults with autism spectrum disorder.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAdults with autism enrolled in Medicaid were diagnosed with early-onset dementia at a younger age and had a significantly higher risk of developing it than the general Medicaid population. The risk was highest for those with co-occurring intellectual disability, but remained elevated for those with autism alone.
• PTOTCase-Control2022Increased foot strike variability during turning in Parkinson's disease patients with freezing of gait.Gait & posturePeople with Parkinson's who freeze take shorter, wider turns with less foot contact and more variability. Freezing happens most often in the middle of a turn, where the body must change direction fastest, suggesting this phase is a key target for therapy.
• PTPilot2022Gait biofeedback training in people with Parkinson's disease: a pilot study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationVisual biofeedback reduced side-to-side trunk lean in people with Parkinson's disease, but the effect was not present at seven-day follow-up. During feedback, walking slowed and trunk and pelvis motion increased when adjusted for speed.
• PTOTOther2022Egocentric vision-based detection of surfaces: towards context-aware free-living digital biomarkers for gait and fall risk assessment.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationA waist-mounted camera with AI software successfully identified walking surfaces like carpet, wood, and pavement in older adults' homes. This technology could help therapists pinpoint specific environmental hazards, such as slippery tiles or uneven ground, that contribute to fall risk in daily life.
• PTOTCohort2022Effect of life-space mobility on subjective well-being in aged home-based rehabilitation users with different levels of independence in activities of daily living.Journal of physical therapy scienceFor home-based rehab users who are mostly independent, greater life-space mobility strongly correlated with better subjective well-being. This link was absent in those with moderate or severe disabilities. Expanding community access may support well-being in higher-functioning patients.
• PTOTQualitative2022ExerG: adapting an exergame training solution to the needs of older adults using focus group and expert interviews.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationOlder adults want exergames to feel safe and real. They asked for harnesses, therapist presence, and tasks like shopping rather than fantasy worlds. Therapists worried that technical glitches or lack of home access would ruin motivation. These insights guide device design, not treatment outcomes.
• PTOTSLPCohort2022Evaluating the Association Between Hearing Loss and Falls in Adults With Vestibular Dysfunction or Nonvestibular Dizziness.Ear and hearingHearing loss was not associated with falls in patients with vestibular dysfunction or non-vestibular dizziness. This null finding held across all subgroups, including those aged 65 or older, those with high medication burden, and those with bilateral vestibular hypofunction.
• PTOTCohort2022Degree of Safety Against Falls Provided by 4 Different Prosthetic Knee Types in People With Transfemoral Amputation: A Retrospective Observational Study.Physical therapyFluid-controlled prosthetic knees were linked to a higher rate of falls than microprocessor knees in people with transfemoral amputation during inpatient rehab. Antidepressants and antiepileptics carried even larger fall risks than any knee type.
• PTOTSLPCohort2022Physiotherapy-assisted prone or modified prone positioning in ward-based patients with COVID-19: a retrospective cohort study.PhysiotherapyIn 13 frail ward patients with COVID-19, physiotherapy-assisted prone or side-lying positioning raised oxygen saturation by 4% and lowered oxygen flow needs after 15 minutes. Modified positions enabled participation for those unable to lie fully flat.
• PTOTCohort2021The Association of Physical Function Measures With Frailty, Falls History, and Metabolic Syndrome in a Population With Complex Obesity.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesPatients with complex obesity showed physical function typical of people twenty years older. Frailty was rare but linked to falls, while metabolic syndrome was common but not linked to frailty. Screening for falls risk and frailty should be routine in this group.
• PTSystematic Review2022Physical Therapist and Physical Therapist Student Knowledge, Confidence, Attitudes, and Beliefs About Providing Care for People With Dementia: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review.Physical therapyPhysical therapists and students feel dementia care is complex and lack confidence, especially in communication and behavior management. Most believe dementia patients deserve rehab but doubt their potential to improve. They report insufficient training and unsupportive systems as major barriers to effective care.
• PTOther2022Gait cycle time variability in patients with knee osteoarthritis and its possible associating factors.Journal of physical therapy scienceFemale knee OA patients showed more irregular timing of their gait cycle than healthy women, even at their comfortable walking speed. Slower 5-meter walk times and worse knee pain and function were related to this irregularity.
• PTOTSystematic Review2021Effectiveness of Self-Monitoring Approach Using Fitness Trackers to Improve Walking Ability in Rehabilitation Settings: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesAdding fitness trackers to usual rehabilitation showed little to no improvement in walking ability across most conditions. Stable COPD patients saw a small increase in walking distance that was still below the threshold for clinical importance. Trackers alone are not a fix for gait deficits.
• PTOTNarrative Review2021Klotho: An Emerging Factor With Ergogenic Potential.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesThis review links low Klotho protein levels to muscle weakness and poor physical function in aging and kidney disease. It suggests exercise may raise Klotho levels, but human evidence is observational. No therapy is proven to improve patient outcomes yet.
• PTCohort2022Change in static standing balance ability of community-residing elderly females after the onset of COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.Journal of physical therapy scienceOne-legged standing time declined significantly in 2020. The decline was significant in women 75 and older, but not in women 65 to 74.
• PTOTRCT2022Comparison of the effects of external focus of attention with metaphor and internal focus of attention on temporal changes in seating pressure during sitting motion in community-dwelling elderly people.Journal of physical therapy scienceTelling healthy older adults to imagine sitting in a bathtub without making waves led to smoother, safer sit-downs than telling them to lean forward slowly. This external focus reduced the speed of pressure increase on the spine, potentially lowering fracture risk.
• PTOTSLPOther2021Out-of-Home Activities and Health in Older Adults: A Scoping Review.OTJR : occupation, participation and healthResearch on older adults leaving home focuses heavily on social and leisure activities. It rarely measures the quality of the experience, such as autonomy or meaning. Clinicians should not assume simply going out improves health; what people do and how they feel matters.