Effects of an Information and Communication Technology-Based Fitness Program on Strength and Balance in Female Home Care Service Users

Sonja Jungreitmayr, Susanne Ring-Dimitriou, Birgit Trukeschitz, Siegfried Eisenberg and Cornelia Schneider
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Sonja Jungreitmayr: Department of Sport and Exercise Science, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, 5400 Hallein-Rif, Austria
Susanne Ring-Dimitriou: Department of Sport and Exercise Science, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, 5400 Hallein-Rif, Austria
Birgit Trukeschitz: Research Institute for Economics of Aging, Vienna University of Economics and Business, 1020 Vienna, Austria
Siegfried Eisenberg: Research Institute for Economics of Aging, Vienna University of Economics and Business, 1020 Vienna, Austria
Cornelia Schneider: Institute of Computer Science, University of Applied Sciences Wiener Neustadt, 2700 Wiener Neustadt, Austria

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-14

Abstract: There is evidence that training for strength and balance prevents decline in physical function in old age when the training is personally instructed. It is an open question whether interventions that deliver training via up-to-date technologies can achieve long-term effects. This study examined the effects of an 8-month fitness training program delivered via information and communication technology (ICT) on lower-body strength and balance in female home care users ( n = 72) aged 75 years on average. For statistical analysis, the test group was divided into two subgroups, one who used the program at least 8 times per month ( n = 26) and another one who used the program less often ( n = 17) compared with a control group that received no exercise program ( n = 29). It was found that regular ICT-exercisers exhibited positive effects over time on lower-body strength and balance compared to a decrease in both indicators in irregular exercisers and the control group. The authors see potential in offering exercise programs to people of advanced age via ICT to counteract physical decline in old age.

Keywords: exercise; function/mobility; assistive technology; assisted living (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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