A home programme cut post-stroke falls by 33 per cent over 12 months, in what researchers said was a world first for a non-drug intervention.
The study, known as the Falls After Stroke Trial, found a co-ordinated programme of functional exercise, reducing hazards around the home and coaching on mobility outside the home cut falls among stroke survivors.
The research was led by teams from the University of Sydney and Macquarie University, with collaborators from Monash University and the University of Canberra.
It is described as the first study to show that a non-drug intervention after stroke can effectively prevent falls.
Professor emeritus Lindy Clemson of the School of Health Sciences at the University of Sydney, lead author of the study, said: “More than twice as many people with stroke have falls compared with the general older population, and they are also likely to be repeat fallers.
“Falls after stroke can lead to serious injury and hospitalisation, delaying recovery and rehabilitation, and jeopardising long-term health and wellbeing.”
“The decrease we saw in the rate of falls among people receiving the active intervention programme was underpinned by worthwhile improvements in their mobility, balance, community participation, and self-efficacy.”
Stroke survivors in three Australian states were randomly assigned to receive either a structured intervention programme or usual care after their initial stroke rehabilitation while living in the community.
The three-part programme was delivered by a physiotherapist and an occupational therapist working together through ten home visits and follow-up phone calls.
It included habit-forming exercise to improve balance and strength as part of daily activities, reducing fall hazards in the home and encouraging protective behaviours, and coaching participants towards a mobility goal outside the home, such as walking in the park, a shopping trip or using public transport.
Co-author Professor Catherine Dean of the School of Health Sciences and Nursing at Macquarie University said: “By focusing on stroke survivors living in their communities and testing an intervention delivered in the home, we’ve ensured the intervention reflects something that can readily be implemented.
“We believe our world-first finding could help reduce the global burden of falls after stroke.”
