Effect of whole body vibration on mealtime sitting postural stability of the elderly with visual Impairment

Abstract

Problematic feeding posture could lead to dysphagia in the elderly with visual impairment. The aim of this study was to explore the potential of whole body vibration (WBV) as an alternative dysphagia treatment for the visually impaired elderly by comparing the effects of 4-week and 8-week WBV training on the elderly’s sitting postural stability during mealtime. Seventeen elderly (all female; mean age 86 ± 6.79 years) were assigned to 8-week WBV training (N = 9) or no training (N = 8). Outcome measures were postural stability and knee extension strength. Mid-test was carried out at the end of the fourth week of training and post-test was carried out at the end of the eighth week of training. The results showed that training-induced changes were found in the sitting postural stability in the experimental group only, with large effect sizes. The improvements were more significant at the eighth week of WBV training than at the fourth week. No significant change in knee extension strength was found in both groups. In conclusion, for the elderly with visual impairment, better outcomes of postural stability were found at 8-weeks of WBV training than 4-weeks of training. The effects of WBV on feeding posture and its clinical implication remains to be further explored.