Effects of Regular Exercise on Sensory-motor Functions and Fall Risk in the Elderly

Falls in elderly population are an important public health problem. The aim of this study is to examine the vibration, proprioception, muscle strength, static balance, reaction time and postural stability parameters of female individuals aged 65 and over who exercise regularly by comparing them with sedentary female individuals in the same age group and to determine the effect rates of these parameters on fall risk. A total of 92 individuals will evaluate in the study, including 46 participants who perform regular exercise and 46 participants with a sedentary lifestyle. Participants who performs regular exercise will determine among individuals who going to participate in a combined exercise program under the control of a physiotherapist, 2-3 days a week for 8 weeks. The socio-demographic characteristics, health conditions and exercise habits of the participants will be recorded. For evaluating the physical activity levels of the participants, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-short form (IPAQ-SF); for vibration sense evaluation, 128-Hz frequency tuning fork; for the evaluation of proprioception sense, angle repetition test; for the isometric muscle strength assessment, digital hand dynamometer; for static balance evaluation, standing stork balance test; for reaction time evaluation, MoART measuring device; for postural stability evaluation, PROKIN-PK200W\* (Tecnobody, Italy) device and for fall risk assessment, Morse fall scale and MAHC-10 fall questionnaire will be used.