Real-Life Outcomes of a Multicomponent Exercise Intervention in Community-Dwelling Frail Older Adults and Its Association with Nutritional-Related Factors

Abstract

Most of the studies on physical exercise in older adults have been conducted through randomized clinical trials performed under tight experimental conditions. Data regarding Real-Life physical exercise intervention programs in older adults with different conditions and in different settings, are lacking. This is an interventional, prospective and pragmatic Real-Life study in which fifty sedentary and frail individuals were enrolled. We aimed at determining if a Real-Life exercise intervention outweighs previously reported improvements in a Clinical Trial (NCT02331459). We found higher improvements in the Real-Life exercise intervention vs. the Clinical Trial in functional parameters, such as Fried’s frailty criteria, Tinetti, Barthel and Lawton & Brody scales. Similar results were found in the dietary habits, emotional and social networking outcomes determined through the Short-MNA, Yesavage, EuroQol and Duke scales. The Real-Life intervention led to a significant reduction in the number of falls, visits to the primary care centers and emergency visits when compared to the results of our previously published Clinical Trial. The implementation of a Real-Life exercise intervention is feasible and should be a major priority to improve health-span in the older population.

Digital health technology combining wearable gait sensors and machine learning improve the accuracy in prediction of frailty

“…During the aging process, the loss of function is intrinsic to all the physiological systems, including the Central and peripheral nervous systems, musculo-skeletal system, and cardiopulmonary system. The most dramatic and significant changes is the decline in limb muscle, which can lead to changes in gait parameters such as walking speed, cadence, and stride-length (9,10). Gait speed, which is a quantifiable index of ambulatory ability and a major predictor of future health outcomes (11), is commonly used as an outcome in the research of frailty.…”

Implementation and Core Components of a Multimodal Program including Exercise and Nutrition in Prevention and Treatment of Frailty in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Narrative Review

“…Although one session per week can be sufficient to improve strength and physical performances, greater gains on muscle strength and muscle size are induced with two to three sessions per week [50,51,61,170]. However, attending more than three exercise sessions per week may be difficult for older adults with frailty, as suggested by authors, and it may interfere with adherence [27,43,47].…”

“…However, the specific composition of the programs proposed (frequency, intensity, type, time, volume and progressiveness) has to be tailored to individual characteristics and objectives in order to improve exercise responses. The intervention approaches, behavioral strategies and indications for these programs need also to be refined and framed [47]. The main objective of this work is to guide the actions of HCP and enable them to widely and effectively implement multimodal programs including exercise, nutrition and behavioral strategies in real-life settings.…”