Effects of Combined Endurance and Resistance Eccentric Training on Muscle Function and Functional Performance in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the adherence to treatment and efficacy of an eccentric-based training (ECC) program on peripheral muscle function and functional exercise capacity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). DESIGN: Prospective, assessor-blinded, randomized controlled trial. SETTING: The cardiopulmonary rehabilitation unit of a tertiary subacute referral center. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty (N=30) stable inpatients (mean age 68±8 years; FEV1 44±18% of predicted) with COPD were included in the study. INTERVENTIONS: Inpatients were randomly assigned to 4 weeks of a combined endurance and resistance ECC (n=15) or conventional training (CON; n=15). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Quadriceps peak torque (PT) was the primary outcome measure for muscle function. Rate of force development (RFD), muscle activation and quality (quadriceps PT/leg lean mass), 6-min walk distance (6MWD), 4-meter gait speed (4mGS), 10-meter gait speed, 5-repetition sit-to-stand (5STS), dyspnea rate, and mortality risk were the secondary outcomes. Evaluations were performed at baseline and repeated after 4 weeks and 3 months of follow-up. RESULTS: Quadriceps PT, RFD, and muscle quality improved by 17±23% (P<.001), 19±24%, and 16±20% (both P<.05) within the ECC group. Besides, a significant between-group difference for RFD (56±94 Nm/s, P=.038) was found after training. Both groups showed clinically relevant improvements in 6MWD, 4mGS, dyspnea rate, and mortality risk, with no significant differences between groups. CONCLUSION: Combined endurance and resistance ECC improved lower limbs muscle function compared with CON in inpatients with COPD. In contrast, ECC did not further improve functional performance, dyspnea, and mortality risk. ECC may be of particular benefit to effect on skeletal muscle function in patients with COPD.

The Effect of Personalized Shoe Insoles on Parkinson's Disease Subjects: A Triple-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial.

Subjects with Parkinson's Disease (PD) display different motor and non-motor symptoms. Different therapies have been shown to be effective, such as plantar foot stimulation, which has proved to be effective for motor symptoms. Different stimulation methods were proposed and tested through specific devices, or insoles. Our aim was to assess the effect of a newly designed custom-made insole called PRO-STEP compared with a flat sham insole on subjects with PD. Subjects were randomized 1:1 into two arms and were asked to wear PRO-STEP or sham insoles for at least 6 h per day for 10 weeks. Participants were evaluated at four timepoints. Forty-two subjects were randomly assigned to the PRO-STEP (EG) or sham group (SG). The comparison of the EG and SG without and with insoles (T0-T1) did not show significant differences in the TUG time and in the 10MWT gait parameters. At T1, T2, and T3 TUG time, BBS, SF12-MC, and SF12-PC did not show significant differences. The satisfaction level with the PRO-STEP or sham insoles was high in both groups. PD patients were satisfied with PRO-STEP insoles; however, plantar foot stimulation is not effective from a functional perspective. Future studies should consider possible modifications to the proposed stimulation to improve its effectiveness in patients with PD.

The Efficacy of Electromagnetic Diathermy for the Treatment of Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to establish the effect of electromagnetic diathermy therapies (e.g., shortwave, microwave, capacitive resistive electric transfer) on pain, function, and quality of life in treating musculoskeletal disorders. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review according to the PRISMA statement and Cochrane Handbook 6.3. The protocol has been registered in PROSPERO: CRD42021239466. The search was conducted in PubMed, PEDro, CENTRAL, EMBASE, and CINAHL. RESULTS: We retrieved 13,323 records; 68 studies were included. Many pathologies were treated with diathermy against placebo, as a standalone intervention or alongside other therapies. Most of the pooled studies did not show significant improvements in the primary outcomes. While the analysis of single studies shows several significant results in favour of diathermy, all comparisons considered had a GRADE quality of evidence between low and very low. CONCLUSIONS: The included studies show controversial results. Most of the pooled studies present very low quality of evidence and no significant results, while single studies have significant results with a slightly higher quality of evidence (low), highlighting a critical lack of evidence in the field. The results did not support the adoption of diathermy in a clinical context, preferring therapies supported by evidence.

Muscle Power in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

This study aimed to review the impact of training on muscle power in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of exercise-based interventions on limbs muscle power and rate of force development in COPD patients were investigated. Five international databases were searched until October 2022. Meta-analyses were performed calculating the mean difference or standardized mean difference. Risk of bias in studies was assessed using Cochrane Risk of Bias tool 2.0. A total of nine studies were included in the analysis. There were concerns about risk of bias in seven out of nine studies. Comparison of exercising and non-exercising groups showed a significant effect of exercise in improving muscle power (P=0.0004) and rate of force development (P<0.001), in five and three trials, respectively. Four studies comparing different trainings showed no significant results on muscle power (P=0.45). Eight to 16 weeks of exercise-based intervention versus no intervention might be beneficial to enhance upper and lower limbs muscle power and rate of force development in people with COPD. In contrast, muscle power did not improve when different training modalities were compared. Future studies performing power training in COPD patients are encouraged.

Home-based pulmonary rehabilitation in patients undergoing (chemo)radiation therapy for unresectable lung cancer: a prospective explorative study.

AIMS: The prevention of pulmonary toxicity is an important goal for patient candidate to radiation therapy for lung cancer. There is a lack of evidence on the role of exercise training for patients with unresectable stage III lung cancer candidated to radical treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a home-based pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program and to identify reliable tools in terms of respiratory function, exercise capacity and quality of life. METHODS: Patients' recruitment lasted from April 2020 till February 2022. The PR program was proposed concomitantly to radiation therapy to the first 20 patients (interventional group, IG), and the other 20 patients were identified as an observational group (OG). All patients were assessed at baseline (T0) and after 8 weeks (T2) with 6 minute walking test (6MWT), modified Borg Scale (mBORG), SF-36 questionnaire (SF-36) and pulmonary function test (PFT); after 4 weeks (T1), only SF-36 was administered. RESULTS: A decrease of 13.8 m in the walked-distance was registered in the OG between T0 and T2 (p = 0.083). Instead, an increase of 56.6 m in the distance walked was recorded in the IG between T0 and T2 (p ≤ 0.001). In the OG, the mBORG scores showed a negative trend. On the contrary, in the IG, these scores showed a slight improvement. In the OG, all the items of SF-36 scores decreased between T0 and T1. In the IG, an increased trend from T0 to T2 was observed for all the items of SF-36. No clinically significant variations were detected from baseline to T2 in both groups regarding PFT. CONCLUSION: The 6MWT, mBORG and SF-36 resulted as useful tools to assess the role of a PR program. A significant gain in functional exercise capacity and a prevention of the physiological impairment of QoL during radio(chemo)therapy was registered.

Muscle function and functional performance after pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a prospective observational study.

This study aimed to measure changes in different properties of skeletal muscles and evaluate their contribution and relationship to changes in functional performance after pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD outpatients attending 5 weeks of conventional PR were recruited. Functional performance [5-repetitions sit-to-stand (5STS), and 4-m gait speed (4mGS)], and muscle function (maximal isometric strength, power, force control, and relative concentric and eccentric activation during 5STS) were assessed after PR and 3 months of follow-up. Twenty patients (71 years; 52% of predicted FEV1) completed the study. 4mGS and relative concentric activation during 5STS decreased respectively by 7.7% and 26% between the beginning of PR and follow-up. Quadriceps strength, power, and force control improved by 10.4%, 27.3%, and 15.2%, respectively, from the beginning of PR to follow-up the relative eccentric activation during 5STS explained 31% of the variance in 4mGS changes. In conclusion, functional performance appeared to decline after conventional PR, whereas several properties of skeletal muscles were maintained at follow-up in COPD outpatients. Of note, eccentric contractions might play a role in the improvement of functional performance. Therefore, future studies with interventional design should include eccentric training in PR programs during clinical COPD practice.

Movement Analysis Could Help in the Assessment of Chronic Low Back Pain Patients: Results from a Preliminary Explorative Study.

Introduction: This study aimed to assess the reliability of a qualitative scoring system based on the movement analysis of the spine in different populations and after usual care rehabilitative intervention. If proven true, the results could further future research development in quantitative indexes, leading to a possible subclassification of chronic low back pain (cLBP). Methods: This was a preliminary exploratory observational study. Data of an optoelectronic spine movement analysis from a pathological population (cLBP population, 5 male, 5 female, age 58 ± 16 years) were compared to young healthy participants (5M, 5F, age 22 ± 1) and were analysed via a new qualitative score of the pattern of movement. Internal consistency was calculated. Two independent assessors (experienced and inexperienced) assessed the blinded data, and we calculated inter- and intrarater reliability. We performed an analysis for cLBP pre and post a ten session group rehabilitation program between and within groups. Results: Internal consistency was good for all movements (α = 0.84-0.88). Intra-rater reliability (Intraclass correlation coefficient-ICC) was excellent for overall scores of all movements (ICC(1,k) = 0.95-0.99), while inter-rater reliability was poor to moderate (ICC(1,k) = 0.39-0.78). We found a significant difference in the total movement scores between cLBP and healthy participants (p = 0.001). Within-group comparison (cLBP) showed no significant difference in the total movement score in pre and post-treatment. Conclusion: The perception of differences between normal and pathological movements has been confirmed through the proposed scoring system, which proved to be able to distinguish different populations. This study has many limitations, but these results show that movement analysis could be a useful tool and open the door to quantifying the identified parameters through future studies.

A systematic review opens the black box of "usual care" in stroke rehabilitation control groups and finds a black hole.

INTRODUCTION: In experimental trials, new methods are tested against the "best" or "usual" care. To appraise control group (CG) interventions provided as "usual care," we focused on stroke as a leading cause of disability demanding rehabilitation as a complex intervention. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: For this methodological appraisal, we conducted a systematic review of RCTs without timespan limitation. The PICO included stroke survivors, rehabilitation, control group intervention, lower limb function. To assess the risk of bias, we used the Cochrane risk of bias tool (RoB). We identified the terminology describing the CG Program (CGP), performed a knowledge synthesis and conducted a frequency analysis of provided interventions. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: We included 155 publications. 13.6% of the articles did not describe the CG, and 11.6% indicated only the professionals involved. In the remaining 116 studies, three studies provided an intervention according to specific guidelines, 106 different "usual care" CGPs were detected, with nine proposed twice and two between four and five times. The most adopted terminology to state "usual care" was "conventional physiotherapy." CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that usual care in CG does not actually exist, as both specific terminology and consistency within CGP contents are missing. Reporting guidelines should give better assistance on this issue. These results should be verified in other fields.

Temporal and kinematic analyses of timed up and go test in chronic low back pain patients.

PURPOSE: To analyze temporal and kinematic parameters of chronic Low-Back Pain (cLBP) subjects compared to healthy subjects during Timed Up and Go Test (TUG) execution implemented with an Inertial Measurement Unit and to explore the correlations of those parameters with pain and disability. METHODS: Observational cross-sectional study. Thirty-one subjects with cLBP [(19 females - 61%), mean age 61 ±â€¯19] were allocated to the case group, and 14 healthy [(10 females - 71%), mean age 62 ±â€¯6] subjects to the control group. Instrumented TUG was administered to both groups. The Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire and Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) were also administered for disability and pain assessment in the case group. RESULTS: Mean TUG time to completion [12.2 ±â€¯3.5 s for cLBP; 8.1 ±â€¯0.9 s for healthy] and the most of sub-phases duration significantly differed between groups (p < 0.05). As for kinematic parameters, significant differences (p < 0.05) were mainly retrieved in acceleration components during the sit-to-stand and stand-to-sit phase, with the cLBP group showing lower accelerations. Significant correlation [from strong (ρ = 0.75 of time to completion) to moderate (ρ = 0.43 of sit-to-stand)] was observed between RMQD score and all temporal parameters and with most of the kinematic parameters. No correlation with NPRS score was found. CONCLUSIONS: Instrumented TUG application into a cLBP population provides valuable information about movement behaviors with a deeper assessment of objective functional impairment and disability in respect of the classical stop-watch outcome of TUG, possibly allowing a better design of the rehabilitative intervention.

Gait parameters assessed with inertial measurement unit during 6-minute walk test in people after stroke.

Gait impairments are among the main issues for stroke survivors as they are often linked with a lack of endurance capacity, balance impairments and functional limitations. These conditions can be carefully assessed by combining an endurance capacity test, the 6-minute walk test (6MWT), with the analysis of gait performed by an inertial measurement unit (IMU). We investigated the evolution of gait spatiotemporal and kinematic parameters during the 6MWT and compared it with age-matched healthy subjects. Moreover, gait parameters and 6MWT distance were associated with clinical outcome scales. In a postacute rehabilitation general hospital, we performed an observational study. Subjects with a single cortical stroke were recruited into the stroke group (SG). An age-matched healthy group (HG) was also recruited. All participants performed a 6MWT while wearing an IMU. The outcomes considered were 6MWT distance, gait spatiotemporal and kinematic parameters, and symmetry. Before the test at each subject, in the SG was administered Berg balance scale, Canadian neurological stroke scale and motricity index. 32 subjects were recruited into the SG, and 12 into the HG. Between the paretic and nonparetic limbs of the SG, there were differences in the stance phase and single support phase (P < 0.05). SG gait speed and stride length strongly correlated with balance, strength and disability scales. The SG walked fewer meters than the HG (Δ = -260.90 m; P < 0.001). Adopting an IMU during a 6mwt resulted valuable and effective in providing meaningful information regarding both the disability and functional capabilities of SG subjects.

Quantitative analysis of voluntary movement and anticipatory postural adjustments: a functional approach.

Daily living activities and tasks like standing forward reaching present complex Anticipatory Postural Adjustments (APAs), and an objective, repeatable, subject- and task-dependent procedure to detect Voluntary Movements (VM) and APAs onsets is still missing. This paper proposes a new approach to the VMs study, based on a functional mechanical interpretation of the movement performing, which allows defining kinematic and dynamic APAs. A protocol for the identification of VMs and APAs onsets in the reaching movement is presented. Acquired data on 9 healthy young subjects enable a preliminary validation of this method suitability as support for an objective quantification of APAs.

Effectiveness of Continuous Chest Wall Vibration With Concurrent Aerobic Training on Dyspnea and Functional Exercise Capacity in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of continuous chest wall vibration with concurrent aerobic training in addition to a 4-week pulmonary rehabilitation program on dyspnea and functional exercise capacity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). DESIGN: Randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled trial. SETTING: The Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Unit of a tertiary referral subacute rehabilitation center. PARTICIPANTS: A sample of 146 consecutive patients with COPD (Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease II-III-IV) were assessed for eligibility. The final sample of 40 patients (N=40) was randomized into 3 groups (intervention, sham intervention, control). INTERVENTIONS: All groups carried out 5 sessions per week for 4 weeks of standard pulmonary rehabilitation treatment. The 2 daily 30-minute sessions included aerobic training and resistance training or airway clearance techniques. The intervention group performed the aerobic training with the addition of continuous chest wall vibration applied during cycling, whereas the sham intervention group received continuous chest wall vibration as a placebo during cycling. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Six-minute walk distance (6MWD) and Barthel Index based on dyspnea (BID). RESULTS: A total of 36 participants completed the study (69±7 years; forced expiratory volume in 1 second percentage of predicted, 40.15%±15.97%). Intention to treat analysis showed no significant differences between groups for 6MWD and BID. However, the increase in 6MWD was a clinically important difference in the intervention group (42.57±43.87m, P=.003), with a moderate effect size (d=0.58). CONCLUSIONS: Continuous chest wall vibration with concurrent aerobic training in addition to a standard pulmonary rehabilitation program might improve functional exercise capacity compared with usual care, but there were no effects on dyspnea, respiratory muscle function, or quality of life in patients with COPD.

Fast-track rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty reduces length of hospital stay: A prospective, case-control clinical trial.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to compare the impact of fast-track rehabilitation (FTR) and conventional rehabilitation (CR) on early recovery pattern after fast-track surgery for knee arthroplasty and conventional total knee arthroplasty (TKA). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This prospective, case-control study included a total of 43 adult patients (10 males, 33 females; mean age 69 years; range, 50 to 82 years) who were clinically stable and admitted for rehabilitation after fast-track surgery for knee arthroplasty or conventional TKA January 2016 and August 2016. The patients were divided into two groups as the FTR and CR treatment groups. The FTR program was designed as a patient-focused care, early mobilization, and standardized postoperative milestones. The CR program was designed by standard postoperative rehabilitation care. Primary outcomes were the length of stay (LOS) in the hospital and knee function. Secondary outcomes were pain and activities of daily living. RESULTS: At baseline, both groups were similar in terms of demographic data and primary outcomes. At discharge, intra-group analysis showed significant differences in both groups in all functional outcomes, except for pain, while the inter-group LOS was also significantly different (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Our study results indicate that LOS can be reduced by FTR, yielding the same results in functional recovery and autonomy as CR.

Trunk asymmetry is associated with dominance preference: results from a cross-sectional study of 1029 children.

BACKGROUND: In some studies, an association has been reported between laterality of the curve in scoliotic adolescents and hand dominance; however, additional studies have to be performed to confirm these findings. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to evaluate the prevalence between trunk asymmetry and side dominance in hand, foot and visual laterality in adolescents. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study secondary analysis. In total, 1029 children (491 females) were enrolled from the Secondary School of Brescia, Italy, with a mean age of 12 (SD=0.9 years). All subjects underwent a screening program divided into three phases: Phase 1, collection of demographic and clinical characteristics; Phase 2, spine evaluation with a plumb line and Bunnell Scoliometer; and Phase 3, evaluation of side dominance of the eye, hand and foot with a 4-item survey. RESULTS: Our data showed a prevalence of 0.43%, 1.01% and 0.87% for thoracic, thoracolumbar and lumbar curves, respectively, with a right-side dominance and a prevalence of 2.72%, 2.54% and 0.65% for thoracic, thoracolumbar and lumbar curves, respectively, with a left-side dominance. CONCLUSION: The left-side dominance could have a prevalence on trunk asymmetry in thoracic and thoraco-lumbar curves. Our study suggests that the clinical evaluation of trunk asymmetry should be associated with the evaluation of laterality.

Trunk and craniofacial asymmetry are not associated in the general population: a cross-sectional study of 1029 adolescents.

BACKGROUND: The literature did not show clearly if a correlation between trunk and facial asymmetry exists. The aim of this study was to verify the association between trunk and facial asymmetries, and trunk and facial sagittal configuration in adolescents. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional screening study. It was carried out in a small town in Northern Italy, from February to April 2014. Healthy children met the inclusion criteria. Exclusion criteria were subjects with physical and cognitive disability, genetic disease, and polymorphism. All subjects underwent a three phases for postural screening program. RESULTS: 1029 healthy children were 491 females and 538 males with mean age: 12 (range 11-16) years. The association of facial and trunk asymmetry had a point prevalence rate around 1% for the various regions of the spine, the association on the sagittal plane of almost 1.3% for hyperkyphosis and hyperlordosis. Overall, results showed a very low sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of facial anomalies for trunk asymmetry and sagittal spinal posture. CONCLUSION: While correlations between jaw position and body posture for cervical spine can exist, our study denied association with trunk and back in a general population: postural compensatory mechanism may have minimized the effects of one area on the other, if any existed.

Sagittal balance is correlated with Parkinson's Disease clinical parameters: an overview of spinopelvic alignment on 175 consecutive cases.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to describe the disease-related sagittal balance changes in relation to the sacro-pelvic morphology of Parkinson's Disease patients with different duration of disease. METHODS: One hundred and seventy-five consecutive Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients (102 males, 73 females; age: 55-83 years) participated in the cross-sectional study. The clinical assessment included: Hoehn Yahr (H&Y) score; Tinetti score; plumb line (PL) distance from the spinous process of C7, L3 and S1 and kyphosis apex. Lumbar lordosis (LL), thoracic kyphosis (TK), spinosacral (SSA) and spinopelvic (SPA) angles, spinal tilt, pelvic incidence (PI), sacral slope (SS) and pelvic tilt (PT) were radiographically assessed. RESULTS: Spinosacral and spinopelvic were correlated with the duration of disease and Tinetti score, but not with age. We found a positive correlation between LL and both SSA and SPA. TK was significantly correlated with LL but not with pelvic parameters, while PI with SS and LL. CONCLUSIONS: Female gender, high PI and high LL together with a low PL-C7 distance can be considered as protective factors for spinal imbalance and fall risk; negative factors are represented by male gender, longer disease duration, higher H&Y Class, and low PL-L3 distance. Looking at the pelvis is revealing new important insights in spinal disease management, both surgical and rehabilitative.

Effects of Action Observation Therapy in Patients Recovering From Total Hip Arthroplasty Arthroplasty: A Prospective Clinical Trial.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of action observation therapy (AOT) compared with written information in patients submitted to a physical therapy program after primary total hip arthroplasty (THA). METHODS: We conducted a prospective clinical trial. Twenty-four patients with THA, 62.5% female (aged 69.0 ± 8.5 years), received AOT in addition to conventional physical therapy (experimental group) or written information in addition to conventional physical therapy (exercise and information group) for 10 sessions. Outcomes used were visual analog scale, hip active and passive range of motion, Barthel Index, Short Form 36 (SF-36) Health Survey, Tinetti Scale, and Lequesne Index measurements. All measures were collected at baseline and at the end of the intervention. Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to examine the interventions effects within groups and between groups. RESULTS: No relevant baseline differences were observed between groups. Both treatments produced statistically significant improvements on visual analog scale, active and passive range of motion, Barthel Index, SF-36, Tinetti Scale, and Lequesne Index immediately after the intervention (all, P < .001). SF-36 (physical functioning subscale) revealed a statistically significant intergroups difference (P = .02) after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Both treatments were effective at improving pain, functional status, quality of life, and gait features in patients with primary THA. In addition to conventional physical therapy, AOT improved perceived physical function more than written information. TRIAL REGISTRATION IDENTIFIER: NCT02861638.

Reliability of the Handgrip Strength Test in Elderly Subjects With Parkinson Disease.

BACKGROUND: The handgrip strength test is widely used by clinicians; however, little has been investigated about its reliability when used in subjects with Parkinson disease (PD). The purpose of this study was to investigate the test-retest reliability of the handgrip strength test for subjects with PD. METHODS: The PD group consisted of 15 patients, and the control group consisted of 15 healthy subjects. Each patient performed 3 pain-free maximal isometric contractions on each hand on 2 occasions, 1 week apart. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM), and 95% limits of agreement (LOA) were calculated. The 2-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to determine the differences between sides and groups. RESULTS: Test-retest reliability of measurements of grip strength was excellent for dominant (ICC = 0.97; P = .001) and non-dominant (ICC = 0.98; P = .001) hand of participant with PD and (ICC = 0.99; P = .001) and (ICC = 0.99; P = .001) respectively, of healthy group. CONCLUSIONS: The Jamar hand dynamometer had fair to excellent test-retest reliability to test grip strength in participants with PD.

Moving forward in fall prevention: an intervention to improve balance among patients in a quasi-experimental study of hospitalized patients.

We investigated the effectiveness of three different rehabilitative programs: group exercise, individual core stability or balance training intervention with a stabilometric platform to improve balance ability in elderly hospitalized patients. We used a prospective quasi-experimental study design. Twenty-eight patients, 39.3% women [age (mean±SD) 72.4±6.5 years], known to have had at least a fall in the last 12 months, were consecutively assigned to one of the following three groups: group exercise intervention, individual core stability or balance training with a stabilometric platform (five sessions a week for 3 weeks in each group). Outcomes were collected at baseline and immediately following the intervention period. In each intervention group, patients showed improvement in balance and mobility, shown as an improvement in the three functional tests score (the Tinetti scale, the Berg Balance Scale, and the Time Up and Go test) (all, P<0.05), whereas, generally, the changes in the score of the test of the stabilometric platform (Postural Stability Test and Fall Risk Test) were not significant for all the interventions. No significant group-by-time interaction was detected for any of the intervention groups, which suggests that the groups improved in the same way. These findings indicate that participation in an exercise program can improve balance and functional mobility, which might contribute toward the reductions of the falls of elderly hospitalized patients and the subsequent fall-related costs. Functional scales might be more appropriate than an instrumental test (Postural Stability Test and Fall Risk Test of the Biodex Balance System) in detecting the functional improvement because of a rehabilitative intervention.