Poster Presentation
Thursday, 20 July 2006
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Thursday, 20 July 2006
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
This presentation is part of : Poster Presentations II
Aqua Shoes: Footwear to Reduce Falls
Laurence L. Trail, MSN, MSA, BSN, VAMC, Washington, D.C, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Washington, D.C, DC, USA and Chandresh, R. Mehta, BPT, Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Washington, D.C, DC, USA.
Learning Objective #1: identify patients with postural instability and faulty footwear as high risks for falls.
Learning Objective #2: identify patients that will benefit by reducing fall risk in using footwear intervention that improves postural stability and balance.
PURPOSE: Footwear with thin soles, medium coefficient of friction, and high shoe collars has been shown to reduce falls in older adults. We sought to assess the effect of aqua shoes on postural stability and falls among nursing home residents.
METHODS: In 2004 residents of a 120 bed skilled VA nursing facility were screened and were excluded if they were unable to ambulate, legally blind, had open foot ulcers or severe cognitive impairment. Participants were randomly assigned to either aqua shoes or usual footwear. Assessment of balance (Berg’s Balance Scale, and six balance master tests) and gait (Tinetti’s Gait Scale) was performed at baseline and once after 7-14 days. Nursing staff and participants were queried as to satisfaction with footwear.
RESULTS: 40 participants (38 males) enrolled in and completed the trial. Most reported high satisfaction with the aqua shoes, citing comfort and ease of application. One participant reported discomfort apparently due to lack of arch support. Balance and gait improved in aqua shoe users compared to controls; Berg Balance Test improved 20% compare to 1%. Balance master test scores were improved in all areas tested (eyes open center target, eyes closed center target, rhythmic lateral weight sway, rhythmic forward backward sway, sway reference vision and sway reference surface with eyes open). Two aqua shoe participants fell during the study period and nine control group participants fell. No other adverse effects were reported by participants and nursing staff.
CONCLUSION: Aqua shoes appear to be safe, well tolerated and associated with improved postural and gait stability in these VA nursing home residents. While larger trials are needed to confirm these findings and better identify which residents will benefit from aqua shoes. It appears that aqua shoes may offer low cost and low risk intervention to prevent falls in ambulatory nursing home residents.

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