Effect of an aquatic physiotherapy program on balance and functional capacity in elderly

• Autor(a) principal: Siqueira, Alisson Felipe
• Data de Publicação: 2017
• Outros Autores: Rebesco, Denise Barth, Amaral, Franciele Aparecida, Maganhini, Claudia Bernardes, Dall Agnol, Simone Mader, Furmann, Meiriélly, Mascarenhas, Luis Paulo Gomes
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Saúde e Pesquisa (Online)
• Texto Completo: https://periodicos.unicesumar.edu.br/index.php/saudpesq/article/view/5892
• topic: Senescence; Hydrotherapy; Quality of Life; Postural Balance; Health Promotion.; Senescência; Hidroterapia; Qualidade de vida; Equilíbrio postural; Promoção da saúde

This study aims to assess the effect of aquatic physiotherapy for balance and functional capacity of elderly. This is a clinical, prospective, longitudinal study with elderly people enrolled in a group of hypertensive and diabetic patients (n= 11). The balance was assessed using the Tinetti test and the functional capacity through the 6-minute walk test. The intervention consisted of 3 weekly sessions of 40 minutes each of aquatic physiotherapy during 2 months. Pre and post intervention tests were performed, including with a control group. The statistical analysis was performed using SPSS-16 software. The quantitative variables were assessed by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Face the normality, the paired T-test was utilized with a significance level of 0.05 The experimental group presented significant differences (p 0.05). However, it was noted an improvement in the post-intervention results. The group studied did not present significant improvements in regarding the functional capacity, but the aquatic physiotherapy statistically improved the balance of the elderly who participated of the study. In this regard, the hydrotherapy can be included in health promotion and disease prevention programs, minimizing the impact of the aging process.