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Fall prevention and affecting the quality of gait among the elderly by increasing the afferent signals from the foot
PETRŮ, Ivana
This thesis examines the influence of afferent information coming from the feet to the quality of walking. Bipedal locomotion is a movement that follows people since the first year of life. In childhood, it is a sign of our progressive growth and maturation of the nervous system and in old age it is similar. Often it is the walk that determines the ability of seniors to take care of themselves. With age, it is physiological that the walk changes. Whether it is depending on the diseases, which in elderly age often merge into chronicity, or for example pathological patterns of movement which the body can not compensate so well anymore. Impaired mobility, which goes hand in hand with walking, brings the risk of falling. Fall is one of the most serious injuries for seniors and its consequences can seriously jeopardize self-sufficiency and mobility of seniors. The risk of falling appears just for older people who are no longer able to adapt quickly to changes. The foot is a significant part of the stabilization system of the body. It mediates the first contact with the pad and informs us about its properties. This information is then transmitted to the upper decks of the central nervous system, which then better adapts movement to the pad surface. The amount of afferent information depends on many factors. The most important is the shoe that absorbs a large amount of afferent information from the foot and feet can not fully perform their function of gathering the information. In the theoretical part of my thesis, I discussed changes in physiological, social and psychological, the person goes through the aging process. Then I dealt with falls and their causes, consequences and prevention. In the third chapter I worked sole topic, its construction and the most frequent pathology. And in the last part I focused on walking, its development stages, types, and how should ideally look like. The aim of my thesis is to evaluate how much influence will stimulating the soles of the feet have for walking. Stimulation soles lasted for three months in the form of soft technology and mobilization leg joints, hardening feet hot and cold water, skin stimulation (sifting through the legs in a container with legumes), practicing active (small) foot and eventually coaching momentum and coordination feet by painting or writing with feet (pencil between 1st and 2nd finger). Another aim of my thesis is to identify preventive measures against falling for individual seniors. For this it is necessary to focus on the weaknesses of the individual and to assess its risk of falling. Long-term therapy should be designed so that it is manageable for seniors with regard to his health and ability. In the practical part was used qualitative research. As data acquisition techniques were used anamnesis, kinesiology analysis, examination of walking, fine motor skills and foot examinations of perception. Research was attended by four seniors, three women and one man in age ranges 70-80 years. Therapy carried every week for three months, in the end each proband completed twelve therapies. Each therapy lasted about 30-45 minutes. The results show that it has improved balance especially when standing. Patients gain more stability, two at Romberg III lost titubation and their endurance during solo standing increased. The walk improved, especially in the coordination. In unison, all patients improved fine motor skills of their feet. At the initial examination, only one patient managed to pick up a pen with both feet. At the output, all patients managet it. This work can be used by physiotherapists and other health professionals in nursing homes and similar facilities. It can also be used to increase brand awareness of senior's family members or as injury prevention in the home environment.
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