A home based, nurse delivered exercise programme reduced falls and serious injuries in people ≥80 years of age
QUESTION: In people ≥75 years of age, is a home based exercise programme that includes strength and balance retraining delivered by a nurse effective for reducing falls and related injuries?
Design
Randomised {allocation concealed}*, blinded (outcome assessors), controlled trial with 1 year of follow up.
Setting
A home health service in a geriatric assessment and rehabilitation hospital in New Zealand.
Participants
240 people who were ≥75 years of age (mean age 81 y, 68% women) and were living in their own homes. Exclusion criteria were inability to walk around their own residence, current receipt of physiotherapy, or inability to understand the study. 88% of participants completed 1 year of follow up.
Intervention
121 participants were allocated to a home based exercise programme run by a district nurse. The programme was implemented as part of the nurse's usual work and included muscle strengthening and balance retraining exercises of increasing difficulty and a walking programme. …
