Evidence Hub

Effects of Multicomponent Otago Exercise Program with Added Resistance Training on Sarcopenia in Pre-Frailty Older Adults in Nursing Homes: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Pan N, Chen Y, Wang Z, Liu C, Tong J, He Y, Ossowski ZM

Clinical interventions in aging, 2025

6 citations

Abstract

Background: The Otago Exercise Program (OEP) is suitable for frail older adults but has limited effect on sarcopenia. Resistance training (RT) is commonly used for sarcopenia. This study evaluated the effects of 12 weeks of OEP combined with RT on body composition, physical function, quality of life, and frailty in older adults with pre-sarcopenia in nursing homes.

Methods: Sixty-one pre-frail elderly (aged 65-89 years) with sarcopenia were randomly divided into experimental group (EG) and control group (CG). EG received OEP+RT training three times a week for 12 weeks, and CG maintained daily activities. The InBody 770 was used to assess body composition, Jamar Plus was used to measure grip strength, and international standard scales were used to assess physical function, quality of life and frailty.

Results: Compared to the CG, the EG showed significant improvements in Skeletal Muscle Index (SMI: 5.79 vs 5.43, p=0.037), Skeletal Muscle Mass (21.8 vs 19.5, p=0.017), hand grip strength (19.31 vs 16.92, p=0.029), gait speed (0.9 vs 0.81, p<0.001), and the Five-Times-Sit-to-Stand Test (13 vs 14.35, p<0.001). Within the EG, both SMI and hand grip strength increased significantly compared to baseline levels (p<0.001), whereas in the CG, they decreased significantly (p<0.05). There was no significant improvement in frailty status observed in either group.

Conclusion: OEP combined with RT can improve the sarcopenia-related parameters of the elderly in nursing homes. Short-term…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

Read the paper

Related studies

Go deeper in Evidence Hub

Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.

Open this study Sign up free