Effects of Exercise Performed with Differenct Balance Tools

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the effect of an exercise differs according to the balance tool. [Subjects The subjects were 45 elderly people, 70 years or older (average age 83.2 years old). [Method We divided the subjects into C group, that did not perform balance exercise, D group, that performed balance exercise using a balance disk, and P group that performed balance exercise using a balance pad. The subjects carried out balance exercise two times a week for four weeks. Functional reach (FR), the timed up-and-go test (TUG), 10m walking test (10mWT), and center of foot pressure (COP) were used to assess the effect of the balance exercise. [Results The improvement of COP was larger in groups D and P than in group C, but was not significantly difference between groups D and P. The improvement of FR was larger in group D than in groups C and P. [Conclusion The balance pad exercise led to a large change in COP that might be effective at improving dynamic balance such as FR.