Elder Rehab: A Student-Supervised Exercise Program for Alzheimer's Patients
The GerontologistPublished 1 December 1999Open access
Sharon M. Arkin, Nancy Morrow‐Howell
Citations78
SJR quartileQ1
SJR score1.82
SNIP1.88
Generate an AI Snapshot to get a quick, structured summary of this paper.
Study Snapshot
ObjectiveStudy objective
MethodsResearch methodology
PopulationPopulation studied
Sample sizeSample sizes
OutcomesStudy outcomes here
ResultsStudy results comes here
LimitationsResearch study limitations comes here
A concise AI-generated summary of the paper will appear here once you click Generate AI Snapshot.
TL;DR
The University of Arizona Elder Rehab program offers independent study credit to students who serve as rehab partners and fitness supervisors to noninstitutionalized persons with dementia and may also be suitable for frail and depressed elderly persons without dementia.
Abstract
The physical and mental benefits of exercise are universally recognized, but seldom available to persons with early to moderate stage dementia. Difficulty in initiating and maintaining purposeful behavior, coupled with the inability to travel independently, preclude most community-dwelling dementia sufferers from accessing organized fitness programs. Overburdened caregivers typically lack the inclination and know how to structure and supervise systematic exercise sessions. The University of Arizona Elder Rehab program offers independent study credit to students who serve as rehab partners and fitness supervisors to noninstitutionalized persons with dementia. In addition to regular aerobics and weight training workouts, participants engage in supervised volunteer work and memory- and language-stimulation activities with their student partners. Multiple benefits accrue to all participants. The program is cost effective, easily replicated, and may also be suitable for frail and depressed elderly persons without dementia.
Keywords
PsychologyMedicine
Journal of Psychiatric ResearchDevelopment and validation of a geriatric depression screening scale: A preliminary report
15,041 Citations1982Jerome A. Yesavage, T. L. Brink +5 more
The GDS represents a reliable and valid self-rating depression screening scale for elderly populations and was significantly better correlated with RDC symptoms than was the SDS.
The GerontologistRelatives of the Impaired Elderly: Correlates of Feelings of Burden
5,772 Citations1980Steven H. Zarit, Karen E. Reever +1 more
New England Journal of MedicinePhysical Activity, All-Cause Mortality, and Longevity of College Alumni
2,744 Citations1986Ralph S. Paffenbarger, Robert Hyde +2 more
With or without consideration of hypertension, cigarette smoking, extremes or gains in body weight, or early parental death, alumni mortality rates were significantly lower among the physically active than among less active men.
Europe PMC (PubMed Central)ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription 9th Ed. 2014
925 Citations2014Brad Ferguson
Becoming a Supple Leopard written by Kelly Starrett, Doctor of Physical Therapy and CrossFit coach highlights aberrant movement patterns that may culminate into injury and deprive optimal athletic performance.
Journal of Sport and Exercise PsychologyThe Influence of Physical Fitness and Exercise upon Cognitive Functioning: A Meta-Analysis
772 Citations1997Jennifer L. Etnier, Walter Salazar +4 more
A meta-analytic review was conducted that included all relevant studies with sufficient information for the calculation of effect size and found that as experimental rigor decreased, effect size increased.
Journal of the American Geriatrics SocietyAfter Reaching Retirement Age Physical Activity Sustains Cerebral Perfusion and Cognition
372 Citations1990Robert L. Rogers, John Stirling Meyer +1 more
Those who continued to work or retirees who elected to participate in regular activities sustained more constant CBF levels and scored better on cognitive testing after the fourth year of follow‐up compared to inactive retirees.
Annals of Behavioral MedicineThe Importance of Skeletal Muscle Strength to Physical Function in Older Adults
184 Citations1991David M. Büchner, Barbara J. de Lateur
Whether strength training can improve functional status in older adults is unclear and Rigorously designed randomized controlled trials are needed that address whether long-term effects of exercise on functional status are possible, and how best to promote adherence to exercise in older adults.
American Journal of Occupational TherapyFunctional Performance in Older Adults
160 Citations1995Nancy B. Ellis
Functional performance as a predictor of injurious falls functional performance in community living older adults “physical functional performance and disability in chronic” and the effect of caffeine ingestion on functional performance.
Psychology and AgingRelationships between physical exercise and cognitive abilities in older adults.
146 Citations1989Louise Clarkson-Smith, Alan A. Hartley
Journal of the American Geriatrics SocietyThe Effect of Planned Walking on Communication in Alzheimer's Disease
110 Citations1991Rita Friedman, Ruth M. Tappen
A randomized, non‐blinded two‐group experimental study was undertaken to determine if planned walking has the capacity to improve the communication performance of patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease.
Age and AgeingThe Association between Mental, Social and Physical Activity and Cognitive Performance in Young and Old Subjects
100 Citations1993Helen Christensen, Andrew Mackinnon
The influence of mental, social and physical activity on fluid, crystallized and memory tasks was examined in 60 young and 56 elderly subjects using multiple regression to find that physical activity was associated with higher fluid test performance in old but not in young subjects.
The Journals of Gerontology Series AReliability of Physical Performance Measures in Nursing Home Residents With Alzheimer's Disease
95 Citations1997Ruth M. Tappen, Kathryn E. Roach +3 more
The contention that some physical performance measures can be used to test individuals in the later stages of Alzheimer's disease given appropriate modification is supported.
Perceptual and Motor SkillsAssessment of Functional Fitness among Independent-Older Adults: A Preliminary Report
42 Citations1997Yaël Netz, Esther Argov
Correlations of scores on the test with scores on one of the two self-rated scales of daily functioning and health, while controlling for age, were significant, suggesting the test measures skills that represent the main activities ofdaily functioning.
The GerontologistA Wanderer's Lounge Program for Nursing Home Residents With Alzheimer's Disease
37 Citations1988R. McGrowder-Lin, Aashish D. Bhatt
Journal of Aging and Physical ActivityOlder Adults’ Constraints to Participation in Structured Exercise Classes
33 Citations1997Diane E. Whaley, Vicki Ebbeck
Gender differences were apparent in the constraints chosen as well as reasons why a particular constraint inhibited or prohibited activity, and specific suggestions for strategies included having programs with a purpose, building in flexibility, and encouraging men to participate.
American Journal of Alzheimer s DiseaseVolunteers in partnership: An Alzheimer's rehabilitation program delivered by students
32 Citations1996Sharon M. Arkin
Research Quarterly for Exercise and SportPhysical Activity and Functional Independence in Aging
29 Citations1996M. A. Fiatarone
Old Age, Gender and Physical Activity: The Biomedicalization of Aging
28 Citations1991Patricia Vertinsky
Perceptions of old people as helpless, sick and dependent upon medical intervention “may actually teach older people to become dependent and sick, encouraging them to act the part while simultaneously affirming the power of the medical model to define what is real and important.
Physical & Occupational Therapy In GeriatricsPrinciples of Activities for Persons with Dementia
4 Citations1987Nancy Mace