Objective: to compare the quality of life of elderly participants and non-participants of public physical exercise programs. Method: a control, analytical and cross-sectional study analyzing 108 elderly participants of public exercise programs (SG) and 126 non-participants (CG) in the city of Goiânia, Goias, Brazil, was performed. An initial Assessment Form, the Mental State Mini-Exam, the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, the World Health Organization Quality of Life - Bref (Whoqol-Bref) and the World Health Organization Quality of Life - Old (Whoqol-Old) were used. Comparison of socio-demographic profile and health conditions was performed using the Chi-squared test, while comparison of the quality of life of the SG and the CG was performed using covariance analysis (ANCOVA), followed by the post-hoc Tukey test. Results: the elderly persons in the SG had higher mean scores than those of the CG in all the Whoqol-Bref and Whoqol-Old domains (p<0.05). The active elderly in the CG did not exhibit differences in relation to the insufficiently active or sedentary members of the CG for any Whoqol-Bref or Whoqol-old domain (p≥0.05). Conclusion: the elderly participants in public physical exercise programs had a better perception of quality of life than non-participating elderly persons, and it was found that simply being active may not be enough to guarantee a better quality of life.

RESUMOO objetivo desta pesquisa foi comparar a capacidade funcional de idosos que frequentam programas públicos de exercícios físicos com um grupo controle. Trata-se de um estudo transversal e analítico, onde foram analisados 108 idosos inseridos em programas públicos de exercícios e 126 não inseridos, do município de Goiânia, GO, Brasil. Foram utilizados um questionário sociodemográfico e de condição de saúde, o Mini-Exame de Estado Mental e a versão curta do International Physical Activity Questionnaire. A capacidade funcional dos idosos foi avaliada utilizando o Índice de Barthel (IB), o Índice de Lawton (IL), a força de preensão manual (FPM), o teste de alcance funcional (TAF), o Timed Up and Go (TUG) e o teste de levantar e sentar (TLS). A caracterização do perfil sociodemográfico foi realizada aplicando o teste Qui-quadrado e a comparação das condições de saúde e capacidade funcional foi realizada com base nos testes de Mann-Whitney e Qui-quadrado. Verificou-se melhor desempenho dos idosos inseridos nos programas de exercícios para a média do IB (p<0,001), do IL (p<0,001), do TAF (p<0,001), do TUG (p<0,001), do TLS (p<0,001) e para a FPM dominante e não dominante feminina (p<0,001). Os idosos vinculados aos programas públicos de exercícios físicos apresentaram melhor capacidade funcional em relação aos não inseridos. A inserção de idosos neste tipo de atividade pode reduzir os custos do sistema público de saúde e também contribuir para se evitar condições incapacitantes.Palavras-chave: Idoso, Exercício, Saúde do idoso. Brazilian Applied Science ReviewBraz. Ap. Sci. Rev.,Curitiba, v. 4, n. 1, p. 303-318 jan./fev. 2020 ABSTRACTThe aim of this research was to compare the functional capacity of the elderly who attend public physical exercise programs with a control group. This is a cross-sectional and analytical study, in which 108 elderly people enrolled in public exercise programs and 126 not enrolled, from the city of Goiânia, GO, Brazil, were analyzed. A sociodemographic and health condition questionnaire, the Mini-Mental State Examination and the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire were used. The functional capacity of the elderly was assessed using the Barthel Index (IB), the Lawton Index (IL), the handgrip strength (FPM), the functional reach test (TAF), the Timed Up and Go (TUG) and the sit-up test (TLS). The characterization of the sociodemographic profile was performed using the Chi-square test and the comparison of health conditions and functional capacity was performed based on the Mann-Whitney and Chi-square tests. There was a better performance of the elderly inserted in the exercise programs for the mean of the IB (p <0.001), the IL (p <0.001), the TAF (p <0.001), the TUG (p <0.001), the TLS ( p <0.001) and for female dominant and non-dominant HGS (p <0.001). Elderly people linked to public physical exercise programs had better functional capacity than non-inserted ones. The inclusion of the elderly in this type of activity can reduce the costs of the public health ...