Partially supervised exercise programmes for fall prevention improve physical performance of older people at risk of falling: a three-armed multi-centre randomised controlled trial

Abstract Background Falls have a major impact on individual patients, their relatives, the healthcare system and related costs. Physical exercise programmes that include multiple categories of exercise effectively reduce the rate of falls and risk of falling among older adults. Methods This 12-month, assessor-blinded, three-armed multicentre randomised clinical trial was conducted in adults aged ≥ 65 years identified as at risk of falling. Four hundred and five participants were randomly allocated into 3 groups: experimental group ( n = 166) with the Test P = 0.027) and in the reference group (95% CI 0.06 to 0.86; P = 0.024) compared with the control group. Conclusion The self-administered home-based exercise programme showed the lowest fall incidence rate, but also the highest dropout rate of participants at high risk of falling. Both partially supervised programmes resulted in statistically significant improvements in physical performance compared with the self-administered programme. Trial registration NCT02926105. ClinicalTrials.gov. Date of registration: 06/10/2016.