Effectiveness of an intervention program for prevention of falling among the elderly

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The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a program designed to prevent elderly people from falling. The program, which included physical exercises and health education on the prevention of falling, was made available to elderly residents over 75 years old of S Town in Miyagi Prefecture, who were selected as subjects of this study. Elderly residents over 75 years old of S City in Fukushima Prefecture, to whom the program was not made available, were selected as controls. Surveys were carried out before (August-September 2001) and after (August-October 2002) the intervention program. Interviews were conducted with 487 subjects who participated in the program and with 348 control subjects, and 190 subjects who participated in the program and 79 control subjects underwent physical fitness tests.Incidence of falls were 24.3% for subjects living in the intervention area, and 20.8% for subjects living in the control area *at the survey conducted before the intervention. There was no significant difference in incidence between areas. The percentage of subjects in the intervention group who experienced falls decreased after introduction of the program, whereas the percentage of subjects in the control group who experienced falls increased. The percentage of subjects who walked and exercised regularly increased after the program in the intervention group, whereas the percentage of subjects who walked and exercised regularly decreased in the control group. Moreover, the degree of physical flexibility increased in the intervention group but decreased in the control group. However, the program had no effects on other physical parameters.The present study suggests that the introduction of a physical exercise program and health education on the prevention of falling in a community of elderly people is effective for reducing the incidence of falling.