Published Paper Details:

Background: The aging process contributes to a decrease in muscle mass, vision, and joint range of motion leading to loss to balance and fear of falls. Tripping over obstacle is very common among older adults due to loss of balance leading to falls. Introduction: Declines in all sensory systems (somatosensory, vision, vestibular) and all three stages of information processing (i.e sensory processing, sensorimotor integration, motor output) are found with aging. Older adults have more difficulty maintaining balance when sensory inputs from more than one system are greatly reduced, particularly when they rely solely on vestibular inputs for balance control. Balance problems occur most frequently among the elderly, falls are the leading cause of accidental death among older adults. Methodology & Results: 100 subjects were selected according to inclusion criteria and pre and post outcome measures were taken. They were randomly assigned to intervention & control group. Obstacle crossing was given for 2 weeks 3 times in a week. Results showed statistical significant improvement in pre and post measures of BBS(p<0.000) of the intervention group when compared to the control group. Conclusion: Hence obstacle training on balance and risk of falls by obstacle crossing in geriatric individuals is more effective in improving gait and reducing the risk of falls.