Effect of longitudinal intervention on functional fitness in elderly people

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of intervention with functional fitness promotion program for five years on functional fitness in the elderly living in the community. Out of 245 subjects (intervention 155, control 90) volunteered at the baseline study 98 subjects (intervention 65, control 33) completed 5-year intervention program and 53 subjects died or lost physical ability to live independently. Others did not take part in the investigation after 5 years. The intervention program consisted of exercise program and supporting program based on the findings of the behavioral science and the health education studies. The exercise program was composed of brisk walking and the physical exercises which designed to improve the range of movement in each joint and muscle strength in lower limb. In order to examine intervention effects on each item of functional fitness, multiple classification analysis using the change in each test item during 5 years as dependent variable and each group as independent variable was conducted. Data of age, baseline value of each functional fitness test, history of circulatory or locomotor function diseases, and body mass index were used as covariates, respectively. The results were as follows; 1) In male, both intervention and control groups showed significant declines in each functional fitness test during the intervention period, and no significant difference of these changes were observed between the two groups. In female, same declines in each test item as in male were observed in both groups, but significantly less decline in self-care working was observed in intervention group than in control group. 2) The multiple classification analysis showed that the change in fitness during five years was not significantly different in any test item between the intervention and control groups in male, but significantly less decline in the abilities of standing, walking, self-care working were observed in intervention group than in control group in female. 3) Partial correlation analysis between the change in each test item during 5 years and frequency of brisk walking or physical exercises per month showed no significant relationship in male intervention group. In female, however, significant negative relationships between the change in self-care working and the frequency of the brisk walking per month (r=-0.406, p<0.01), and between the change in standing and the frequency of physical exercises per month (r=-0.409, p<0.01) were observed. These results suggested that this intervention program was effective to increase physical activities in daily life and suppress the decline of functional fitness with aging.