• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1649-1654
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• 2021

In this paper, we introduce a regularization of long short-term memory (LSTM) based fall detection system using TensorFlow that can detect falls that can occur in the elderly. Fall detection uses data from a 3-axis acceleration sensor attached to the body of an elderly person and learns about a total of 7 behavior patterns, each of which is a pattern that occurs in daily life, and the remaining 3 are patterns for falls. During training, a normalization process is performed to effectively reduce the loss function, and the normalization performs a maximum-minimum normalization for data and a L2 regularization for the loss function. The optimal regularization conditions of LSTM using several falling parameters obtained from the 3-axis accelerometer is explained. When normalization and regularization rate λ for sum vector magnitude (SVM) are 127 and 0.00015, respectively, the best sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy are 98.4, 94.8, and 96.9%, respectively.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.167-178
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• 2011

Purpose: This study was done to identify the effects of a health diary program on fall related outcomes the low-income elderly women. Methods: The study was carried out with a nonequivalent control group with pretest-posttest design. The study was composed of two groups, each made up of 24 subjects: experimental group and control group. The subjects were low-income women aged over 65 years with osteoarthritis and both the experimental and control groups were made up of subjects with the same age profiles. The independent variable was the health diary program, and the dependent variables were fall related outcomes (fear of falling, fall-efficacy, knowledge of fall) difficulty of performing activity, and mood state. The health diary program was performed for 50 minutes each session and twice a week for 8 weeks. Data were collected before the health diary program 10 weeks after the beginning of the program. Results: The experimental group showed significant differences in knowledge of fall, fear of falling, and mood state compared to the control group. However there was no significant differences in difficulty of performing activity and fall efficacy. Conclusion: The results of this study may be used as part of an education to prevent falls for low-income elderly women with osteoarthritis.

• 한국노년학
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.259-273
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• 2009

Purpose: This research was conducted to determine the effects of a multifactorial fall prevention program applying HSEP(Home Support Exercise Program) on physical balance and gait, leg strength, fear of falling and falls efficacy of the community-dwelling elderly. Method: The design of this study was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. There were 20 subjects in the experimental group and 21 in the control group. The fall prevention program consists of HSEP and fall related education. The intervention was performed for once a week in the senior citizen center and twice a week at home for 8 weeks. Results: There were significant differences in physical balance and gait, leg strength(hip extensor, hip flexor, knee flexor, ankle plantarflexor, ankle dorsiflexor) and falls efficacy between the experimental group and control group. Conclusion : The fall prevention program applying HSEP used in this study was very effective in increasing physical balance and gait, leg strength and falls efficacy. Finally this study would recommended that a fall prevention program applying HSEP should be extended to community facilities such as elderly welfare center and nursing home.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.620-628
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• 2008

Purpose: The purpose was to identify the effects of a Tai Chi exercise program on physical fitness, fall related perception and health status among institutionalized elderly. Methods: A quasi-experimental research was carried out with a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. There were 23 subjects in the experimental group and 24 in the control group. The data was gathered by structured questionnaires about fall related perception, and health status. Physical fitness was measured by an exercise therapist with a blind principle. Results: At the completion of the 12 weeks Tai Chi exercise program, flexibility (F=4.50, p=.00), and ability to balance (F=3.27, p=.00) had increased significantly. Fall related perception showed significant improvement in the fear of falling (F=-3.52, p=.00). Physical functioning (F=3.38, p=.00), role limitation-physical (F=2.67, p=.01), role limitation-emotional (F=2.47, p=.02). and general health (F=3.88, p=.00) in health status showed significant differences between the two groups. Conclusion: The study findings revealed Tai Chi exercise as a useful nursing intervention for elderly that enhances flexibility and balance, decreases fall related perception and also increases the health status. Further research is warranted to compare the potential effects of Tai Chi exercise and its health benefits from other types of exercise or martial arts.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.559-571
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• 2015

Purpose: This study is to determine the predictive validity of the St. Thomas Risk Assessment Tool in Falling Elderly Inpatients (STRATIFY) for inpatients' fall risk. Methods: A literature search was performed to identify all studies published between 1946 and 2014 from periodicals indexed in Ovid Medline, Embase, CINAHL, KoreaMed, NDSL and other databases, using the following key words; 'fall', 'fall risk assessment', 'fall screening', 'mobility scale', and 'risk assessment tool'. The QUADAS-II was applied to assess the internal validity of the diagnostic studies. Fourteen studies were analyzed using meta-analysis with MetaDisc 1.4. Results: The predictive validity of STRATIFY was as follows; pooled sensitivity .75 (95% CI: 0.72~0.78), pooled specificity .69 (95% CI: 0.69~0.70) respectively. In addition, the pooled sensitivity in the study that targets only the over 65 years of age was .89 (95% CI: 0.85~0.93). Conclusion: The STRATIFY's predictive validity for fall risk is at a moderate level. Although there is a limit to interpret the results for heterogeneity between the literature, STRATIFY is an appropriate tool to apply to hospitalized patients of the elderly at a potential risk of accidental fall in a hospital.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.37-45
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• 2007

This study was designed to examine, applying Rasch analysis based on item response theory, the questionnaires of the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale for the elderly. The subjects were 99 institutional older adults and clients of social welfare facilities. The subjects (17 men, 72 women) ranged in age from 65 to 94 years (mean age 76.5 yrs). The Winsteps software was used to assess whether the ABC scale fits the Rasch model, to estimate the score and to refine the rating scale. The results are as follows. Twenty-two subjects were excluded as misfit persons. Four items were found to be misfits and the order of difficulty of the remaining 12 items was rearranged. Their balance confidence is indicated by -.64~1.12 logit, and the transformation formula is score=[(logit score+2.76)/(2.76+3.48)]${\times}$100. The most difficult item was "Walk outside in icy sidewalks" and the easiest item was "Walk around house." In conclusion, the ABC scale for the elderly has been proven reliable and valid. Therefore, it is expected to be used as an effective examination tool for treatment planning and screening for older adults.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.936-940
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• 2013

As the ageing population grows around the world, the demand for electric wheelchairs, an important mobility assistance device for the disabled and elderly, is gradually increasing. Therefore, a number of studies related to intelligent wheelchairs are actively underway to improve safety and comfort for wheelchair users. However, previous collision avoidance studies for intelligent wheelchairs have concentrated on collision avoidance methods with the shortest distance and by only changing either velocity or heading angle, rather than considering the forces exerted on the user. If a collision avoidance algorithm that does not consider these forces is applied to an intelligent wheelchair, there is a possibility of an accident due to falling as wheelchair users are generally disabled and elderly people. In this paper, we propose a collision avoidance algorithm which minimizes the forces exerted on a wheelchair user by minimizing the variation of the wheelchair's velocity and heading angle when the sizes, positions, velocities, and heading angles of a wheelchair and a moving obstacle are known.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.397-405
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• 2016

Objective: Pilates is a low/mid-intensity exercise that can be easily performed by elderly individuals as it is an individual body-oriented exercise. It is also a cardio workout that can be performed anywhere to develop strength and flexibility. Therefore, we investigated the effects of 8 week Pilates program on the balancing ability of elderly individuals. Method: The research participants were selected from elderly residents in B city. Ten individuals voluntarily signed an agreement to undergo free measurements as well as to participate in the workout program. (Height: $157.1{\pm}11.9cm$, Weight: $61.7{\pm}8.0kg$). The Pilates exercise was performed 60 minutes a day, three times a week for a total of eight weeks. The measurement variables used to test balance were the vestibular test, 5 m habitual and maximum walk test and 3 m tandem walk test. A series of paired t-test were conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 23.0 to analyze all the research data collected in order to determine the balance ability of the participants before and after the Pilates program. Additionally, the statistically significant level for all analysis was set to ${\alpha}=.05$. Results: In the vestibular test, some meaningful changes were observed in the length envelope area (ENV) while standing on one foot, but there were no significant differences in the ENV, rectangle(REC), root mean square, and total length. Results also revealed that statistically significant differences existed in the 5 m habitual and maximum walk test, as well as the 3 m tandem walk test. Conclusion: To summarize the findings, the 8 week Pilates program employed in this study significantly improved the dynamic balance of the elderly participants. Thus, elderly individuals that frequent perform Pilates are expected to enjoy positive benefits such as increased balance and fewer falling accidents.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.533-539
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• 2024

This study investigated the effects of two exercise programs, which include exercise methods to increase muscle strength, balance, and endurance, on the balance ability and fall efficacy of elderly people, and the differences in effects according to preference. Twenty-one elderly people were divided into a group using assistive devices using elastic bands (Experimental Group 1) and a group using the body (Experimental Group 2) and an exercise program was conducted for 4 weeks. The single leg stand (SLS) and functional reach test (FRT) were used to evaluate the elderly's balance ability, and the fall efficacy scale (FES) was used to evaluate the degree of fear of falling. A pre-evaluation was conducted after a 2-week integrated exercise program, and a post-evaluation was conducted after applying the exercise program for 4 weeks. In the study results, within-group SLS, FRT, and FES analyzes all showed statistically significant improvement in the post-assessment compared to the pre-assessment. However, there were no significant differences in the comparison between groups regarding exercise program and between groups according to preference. In conclusion, in order to increase the balance ability and fall efficacy of the elderly, an exercise program must be applied, and it is necessary to use a program that is easy to apply and includes exercise methods that the elderly can easily perform.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.89-99
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• 2020

Objective: This study aimed to report the relationship between walking activity and perceived physical activity barriers after classifying the age group(≤64, 65-74, ≥75). Methods: The subjects were conducted on 1500 residents of two areas, and the walking activity was defined as five or more times a week, 10 minutes or more at a time, and 30 minutes or more per day. Perceived physical activity barriers were lack of time, lack of social support, lack of energy, lack of willpower, and fear of falling. Results: In the group under 64 year, the lack of time (exp(B)=0.819, p=0.002) and the lack of willpower (exp(B)=0.656, p<0.001) were significantly associated. In the 65-74 year old group, the lack of willpower (exp(B)=0.714, p<0.001) and fear of falling (exp(B)=0.787, p=0.003) were a significant association. In the group aged 75 years and over, lack ofwill power (exp(B)=0.734, p<0.001) and fear of falling (exp(B)=0.807, p=0.003) were significantly associated. Conclusion: In order to solve the lack of willpower and lack of time, a walking activity should be performed together at a certain time in the village, and the elderly in the late ages should reduce the fear of falling by performing a fall prevention exercise in parallel.