Effects of exercise intervention according to functional decline risk before and after the study among...

This study aimed to clarify the effects of exercise interventions on the risk of functional decline.

This study included community-dwelling older adults who volunteered to participate in physical fitness measurement sessions and remote exercise classes. The participants were stratified into high-risk (HR) and low-risk (LR) groups based on the cutoff value (16/17 points) of the risk assessment scale for incident functional disability. Body composition and physical function were measured before the exercise intervention, and changes were re-measured 2-3 months after the exercise.

The analysis included 65 participants with complete data. Twenty-five had HR, and 40 had LR. In the HR group, significant decreases were observed in leg muscle score, phase angle of the whole body and lower limbs, gait speed, and single-leg stance. After exercise, handgrip strength and gait speed improved significantly in both the HR (p<0.001, p<0.001) and LR (p=0.002, p<0.001) groups. Fat mass and body fat percentage also increased significantly in the HR (p=0.022, p=0.017) and LR (p=0.001, p<0.001) groups.

Exercise intervention improves physical function regardless of the risk of functional decline. However, certain challenges in maintaining body composition have been observed, suggesting the need for nutritional interventions. J. Med. Invest. 73 : 143-152, February, 2026.