Speech therapy´s intervention for falling prevention in aging

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Speech-Language Pathology

Background:

• Falls are a significant risk for elderly individuals, leading to injury and reduced quality of life.
• Gait and balance impairments are primary contributors to falls in the aging population.
• Targeted interventions are crucial for mitigating fall risk in seniors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of a Speech Therapy intervention program in reducing fall risk among the elderly.
• To assess the program's impact on gait performance and balance in older adults.

Main Methods:

• An intervention study involving 148 community-dwelling older adults (average age 68.6 years).
• Participants underwent assessments using the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI)-Brazilian brief and Timed Up and Go (TUG) tests.
• A 5-week intervention program based on Cawthorne and Cooksey exercises was administered, followed by reassessment of 72 participants.

Main Results:

• A significant percentage of participants initially showed fall risk (25% on DGI-Brazilian brief, 71.6% on TUG).
• Post-intervention, both DGI-Brazilian brief and TUG scores improved significantly, indicating better gait and balance.
• The intervention demonstrated a positive correlation with improved performance in both tests.

Conclusions:

• The Speech Therapy intervention program proved effective in decreasing the risk of falls in elderly individuals.
• The program successfully enhanced gait performance, functional balance, and dynamic balance in the participants.
• This intervention offers a viable strategy for fall prevention in the geriatric population.