Exercise in Older Women: Effects on Falls, Function, Fear and Finances

Functional decline predisposes older adults to falls and resulting injuries, which are serious and common medical problems experienced by older adults. The costs of falling are high, both to the individual and to society. This book is based on a randomized, controlled trial conducted between April 2010 and March 2013 at the UKK Institute for Health Promotion Research, Tampere, Finland. The purpose of the study was to examine risk factors for falling, including body composition, physical functioning and fear of falling in home-dwelling older women. The study evaluated the effects of supervised multimodal group exercise on physical functioning, falls, fall-related injuries and fear of falling, and its cost-effectiveness from a societal perspective.