Documentation of Fall Incidents and Application of a Fall Prevention Programme for Seniors in Northern Greece

Summary

Due to the aging of the earth's population in the coming years, strategies for preventing falls in the elderly are of increasing research interest. Injuries due to falls have a direct impact on the quality of life of the elderly and are associated with very high costs for the healthcare system. However, few organized fall prevention interventions have been implemented in Greece, unlike other EU countries. The systematic recording of falls, the information and education of older people about injury prevention and the participation of older people in organized fall coping strategies in Greece are almost non-existent. Group exercise programs have proven to be effective in reducing falls. The OTAGO exercise program has shown that it can effectively reduce the number of falls in the elderly by up to 54%. However, its widespread implementation by a government agency in Greece such as the Elderly Day Care Centers (EDCC) has not yet been possible.

Conditions

• Elderly
• Accidental Falls
• Prevention
• Exercise

Interventions

OTHER

Experimental

* Training will address issues such as: environmental security, identifying hazards that can lead to a fall, psychological support, getting up from a fall, standing techniques and calling for help. * The exercise program will last for six months and will be based on the OTAGO exercise program, which includes five exercise groups: general warm-up, muscle strengthening exercises, balance exercises, range of motion and stretching exercises. The program will be performed individually or in groups of two people at most and will be conducted once a week in one of the 5 outpatient clinics under the supervision of a specialized OTAGO trainer, while seniors should repeat the exercises twice a week alone at home and also walk twice a week for at least half an hour.

OTHER

Control

* Information / Education about falls The participants in this group will receive the same information - education as the participants of the 1st group. * They will be given a leaflet with general gentle exercises (not fall prevention specific) for the home.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Aristotle University Of Thessaloniki

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Evaggelos Sykaras · Aristotle University Of Thessaloniki

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-12-01

Primary Completion

2021-04-10

Completion

2021-04-10

Countries

• Greece

Study Locations