Exercise, alone or as part of multifactorial interventions, is an effective strategy to prevent falls in older adults. In neurological populations, exercise improves both physical and mental health, but its effectiveness in preventing falls and improving fall-related outcomes remains controversial. This entry provides an overview of the existing literature on fall and fracture prevention in people with neurological disabilities, highlights dose and modalities of interventions that proved to be effective, and identifies current research gaps and future research directions. Exercise-based interventions are effective at reducing falls in people with Parkinson’s disease and may reduce the rate and risk of falls in people with cognitive impairment or dementia, but their evidence among persons with multiple sclerosis, individuals with spinal cord injury (PwSCI), and stroke survivors is uncertain. Further, the existing literature does not provide conclusive evidence to make recommendations in favor of exercise interventions to prevent fractures in people with neurological conditions. Most exercise studies aimed at preventing bone loss rather than evaluating changes in fracture risk, and the evidence comes almost entirely from studies involving PwSCI and stroke survivors. Future studies aiming to prevent falls and fractures in people with neurological disabilities should prioritize the evaluation of multifactorial interventions, with a sample size calculated to detect a desired effect on a specific fall-related outcome, conducted with methodological rigor, and reported according to existing exercise and fall-prevention recommendations.

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Exercise Interventions for Preventing Falls and Fractures in People with Neurological Disabilities

  • Matteo Ponzano,
  • Luca Beratto

摘要

Exercise, alone or as part of multifactorial interventions, is an effective strategy to prevent falls in older adults. In neurological populations, exercise improves both physical and mental health, but its effectiveness in preventing falls and improving fall-related outcomes remains controversial. This entry provides an overview of the existing literature on fall and fracture prevention in people with neurological disabilities, highlights dose and modalities of interventions that proved to be effective, and identifies current research gaps and future research directions. Exercise-based interventions are effective at reducing falls in people with Parkinson’s disease and may reduce the rate and risk of falls in people with cognitive impairment or dementia, but their evidence among persons with multiple sclerosis, individuals with spinal cord injury (PwSCI), and stroke survivors is uncertain. Further, the existing literature does not provide conclusive evidence to make recommendations in favor of exercise interventions to prevent fractures in people with neurological conditions. Most exercise studies aimed at preventing bone loss rather than evaluating changes in fracture risk, and the evidence comes almost entirely from studies involving PwSCI and stroke survivors. Future studies aiming to prevent falls and fractures in people with neurological disabilities should prioritize the evaluation of multifactorial interventions, with a sample size calculated to detect a desired effect on a specific fall-related outcome, conducted with methodological rigor, and reported according to existing exercise and fall-prevention recommendations.