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Updated: Jul 14, 2026
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Published on: October 17, 2018
High-frequency whole-body vibration improves balancing ability in elderly women
Wing-Hoi Cheung1, Hoi-Wa Mok, Ling Qin
1Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Objective:
To investigate the efficacy of high-frequency whole-body vibration (WBV) on balancing ability in elderly women.
Design:
Randomized controlled trial. Subjects were randomized to either the WBV intervention or the no-treatment control group.
Setting:
Community-living elderly women.
Participants:
Sixty-nine elderly women aged 60 or above without habitual exercise.
Intervention:
Side alternating WBV at 20Hz with 3 minutes a day and 3 days a week for 3 months in the WBV intervention group. Those in control group remained sedentary with normal daily life for the whole study period.
Main Outcome Measures:
Limits of stability in terms of reaction time, movement velocity, directional control, endpoint excursion, maximum excursion, and the functional reach test were performed at baseline and endpoint.
Results:
Significant enhancement of stability was detected in movement velocity (P<.01), maximum point excursion (P<.01), in directional control (P<.05).
Conclusions:
WBV was effective in improving the balancing ability in elderly women. This also provides evidence to support our user-friendly WBV treatment protocol of 3 minutes a day for the elderly to maintain their balancing ability and reduce risks of fall.
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