Balance; Distorted, Old Age; Debility
Conditions
Brief summary
The study aims at investigating the effects of an early sleep window after Action Observation Therapy (AOT) on balance in elderly. Forty-five healthy-like elderly will be enrolled and randomized into 3 groups (AOT-sleep, AOT-control and Control) performing a 3-week AOT. AOT-sleep and AOT-control will be asked to watch video-clips showing motor contents before sleeping or at least 12 hours before sleeping, respectively, whereas Control will be asked to watch landascape video-clips before sleeping. Participants will be assessed before and after training and at 1 month follow-up for balance outcomes.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAction Observation Therapy
Action Observation Therapy implies the observation of video-clips representing motor tasks alone or followed by imagination and/or imitation of observed tasks.
Sponsors
Istituto Clinico Humanitas
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
65 Years to 85 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Ability to walk for at least 100 meters with no assistance or aids
Exclusion criteria
* Musculoskeletal disorders able to affect balance * Traumas and/or injuries and/or surgery at the level of the lower limbs, spine in the previous year * Sleep disorders * Drugs able to affect sleep * Dementia or cognitive decline (MCI) * Psychiatric or neurological disorders
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Changes in 10-Meter Walking Test | At baseline, 3 weeks of training and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of gait speed |
| Changes in Timed Up and Go Test | At baseline, 3 weeks of training and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of mobility |
| Changes in Four Step Square Test | At baseline, 3 weeks of training and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of dynamic balance |
| Changes in Lower Quarter Y-Balance Test | At baseline, 3 weeks and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of static balance |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Changes in center of pressure parameters | At baseline, 3 weeks of training and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of postural stability |
| Changes in Fall Efficacy Scale | At baseline, 3 weeks of training and 1 month after the training end | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating changes in terms of fear of falling |
| Pittsburg Quality Sleep Index | 3 weeks | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating the sleep quality in the training period. The scale ranges from 0 (better outcome) to 21 points (worse outcome) |
| Kinesthetic and Visual Imagery Questionnaire | At baseline | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating the imagination ability of participants. The scale range from 0 (worse score) to 50 (better score). |
| Morningness Eveningness Scale | At baseline | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating the chronotype of participants. The score ranges from 16 to 86 points. A score lower than 41 points indicates evening types., scores of 59 and above indicate morning types, while scores between 42-58 indicate intermediate types. |
| Euro Quality of Life - 5 dimensions | At baseline | The outcome measure is aimed at investigating the quality of life of participants. The scale ranges from 0 (worse outcome) to 1 (better outcome). |
Outcome results
None listed