Assessment of balance in mild and moderate stages of Alzheimer's disease: implications on falls and functional capacity

Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria

Eliane Mayumi Kato-narita¹  Ricardo Nitrini²  Marcia Radanovic² 

[1] ,University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das ClínicasSão Paulo SP ,Brazil

关键词: Alzheimer's disease;    balance;    falls;    functional capacity;    elderly;    doença de Alzheimer;    equilíbrio;    quedas;    capacidade funcional;    idosos;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S0004-282X2011000200012

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the correlation between balance, falls and loss of functional capacity in mild and moderate Alzheimer's disease(AD). METHOD: 40 subjects without cognitive impairment (control group) and 48 AD patients (25 mild, 23 moderate) were evaluated with the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Disability Assessment for Dementia (DAD). Subjects answered a questionnaire about falls occurrence in the last twelve months. RESULTS: Moderate AD patients showed poorer balance (p=0.001) and functional capacity (p <0.0001) and it was observed a correlation between falls and balance (r= -0.613; p=0.045). CONCLUSION: There is a decline of balance related to AD which is a factor associated to the occurrence of falls, albeit not the most relevant one. The loss of functional capacity is associated with the disease's progress but not to a higher occurrence of falls. The balance impairment did not correlate with functional decline in AD patients.

【 授权许可】

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