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CompletedNCT01029171Updated Oct 10, 2018

Action Seniors! Exercise to Prevent Falls

An interventional study of Home-based balance and strength retraining exercise program. and control; usual care in Falls, sponsored by University of British Columbia. Completed at 1 site in Canada. Open to participants aged 70 Years and older, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2018-10-10.

Sponsored by University of British Columbia · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
344
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
70 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This study will be a randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of the Otago Exercise Program (OEP) on falls among seniors with a history of falls.

Read the detailed description

A total of 344 community-dwelling adults aged 70 years and older who are referred to a falls clinic secondary to seeking medical attention due to a fall will be randomized to either the 12-month OEP group or usual care. There will be three measurement sessions: baseline, 6 months, and 12 months.

02

Conditions studied

  • Falls

Keywords

  • falls
  • balance training
  • strength training
03

In context

Lead sponsor

University of British Columbia is the lead sponsor of 1,309 studies on the registry; 253 are open to participants now.

Of its 6 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 1 (17%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
70 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  1. Adults older than or 70 years attending a Falls Prevention Clinic Service;
  2. Understands, speaks, and reads English proficiently;
  3. MMSE 8 score > 24/30;
  4. Had one documented non-syncopal fall in the last 12 months and one of the following: a) A Physiological Profile Assessment (PPA) score of at least 1 SD above normal; OR 2) Timed Up and Go Test (TUG) performance of greater than 15 seconds; OR 3) One additional documented non-syncopal fall in the previous 12 months;
  5. Expected to live greater than 12 months;
  6. Community-dwelling (i.e., not residing in a nursing home, extended care unit, or assisted-care facility);
  7. Able to walk 3 meters with or without an assistive device; and
  8. Able to provide written informed consent.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease (e.g., Parkinson's disease);
  2. Diagnosed with dementia (of any type);
  3. Had a stroke;
  4. Have clinically significant peripheral neuropathy or severe musculoskeletal or joint disease; or
  5. Have a history indicative of carotid sinus sensitivity (i.e., syncopal falls).
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
Single (Participant)
Enrollment
344 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    1

    OEP (Otago Exercise Program; home-based balance and strength retraining program)

    Behavioral: Home-based balance and strength retraining exercise program.

  • Active comparator
    2

    CON (control; usual care)

    Behavioral: control; usual care

Interventions

  • BehavioralHome-based balance and strength retraining exercise program.

    A 12-month home-based balance and strength restraining program delivered by a physical therapist

  • Behavioralcontrol; usual care

    Usual care as prescribed by geriatrician.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Falls over a 12 month period.

    Time frame: 12 months

Secondary outcomes

  1. Secondary outcomes of interest include: 1) physiological falls risk; 2) mobility; 3) cognitive function; and 4) economic evaluation.

    Time frame: 12 months

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Vancouver Falls Prevention Clinic, University of British Columbia
    Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Davis JC, Hsu CL, Ghag C, Starkey SY, Jacova P, Dian L, Parmar N, Madden K, Liu-Ambrose T. Baseline health-related quality of life predicts falls: a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial. Qual Life Res. 2022 Nov;31(11):3211-3220. doi: 10.1007/s11136-022-03175-2. Epub 2022 Jul 7. PubMed 35798988 ↗
  • Davis JC, Hsu CL, Barha C, Jehu DA, Chan P, Ghag C, Jacova P, Adjetey C, Dian L, Parmar N, Madden K, Liu-Ambrose T. Comparing the cost-effectiveness of the Otago Exercise Programme among older women and men: A secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2022 Apr 20;17(4):e0267247. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0267247. eCollection 2022. PubMed 35442974 ↗
  • Liu-Ambrose T, Davis JC, Falck RS, Best JR, Dao E, Vesely K, Ghag C, Rosano C, Hsu CL, Dian L, Cook W, Madden KM, Khan KM. Exercise, Processing Speed, and Subsequent Falls: A Secondary Analysis of a 12-Month Randomized Controlled Trial. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2021 Mar 31;76(4):675-682. doi: 10.1093/gerona/glaa239. PubMed 33225343 ↗
  • Davis JC, Khan KM, Hsu CL, Chan P, Cook WL, Dian L, Liu-Ambrose T. Action Seniors! Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of a Secondary Falls Prevention Strategy Among Community-Dwelling Older Fallers. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2020 Sep;68(9):1988-1997. doi: 10.1111/jgs.16476. Epub 2020 May 29. PubMed 32472567 ↗
  • Liu-Ambrose T, Davis JC, Best JR, Dian L, Madden K, Cook W, Hsu CL, Khan KM. Effect of a Home-Based Exercise Program on Subsequent Falls Among Community-Dwelling High-Risk Older Adults After a Fall: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2019 Jun 4;321(21):2092-2100. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.5795. Erratum In: JAMA. 2019 Jul 9;322(2):174. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.9011. PubMed 31162569 ↗
  • Liu-Ambrose T, Davis JC, Hsu CL, Gomez C, Vertes K, Marra C, Brasher PM, Dao E, Khan KM, Cook W, Donaldson MG, Rhodes R, Dian L. Action seniors! - secondary falls prevention in community-dwelling senior fallers: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2015 Apr 10;16:144. doi: 10.1186/s13063-015-0648-7. PubMed 25873254 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Oct 10, 2018, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01029171
Lead sponsor
University of British Columbia
Collaborators
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
Responsible party
Teresa Liu-Ambrose (Principal Investigator, University of British Columbia) — Principal investigator
First posted
Dec 9, 2009
Start date
Nov 2009
Primary completion
Jul 2018
Completion
Jul 2018
Last update
Oct 10, 2018

Study contacts

Teresa Liu-Ambrose
principal investigator · University of British Columbia
Karim Khan, Ph.D
study director · University of British Columbia
Larry Dian, MD
study director · University of British Columbia
Wendy Cook, MD
study director · University of British Columbia
Penny Brasher, Ph.D
study director · University of British Columbia
Carlo Marra, Ph.D
study director · University of British Columbia
Jennifer Davis, Ph.D
study director · University of British Columbia

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in Oct 2018. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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