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A community-based exercise programme to improve functional ability in people with Alzheimer's disease: a randomized controlled trial
Vreugdenhil A, Cannell J, Davies A, Razay G.. Scandinavian journal of caring sciences, 2011-05-12
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Rationale Dementia is a common neurodegenerative condition in older age associated with functional decline across multiple domains. This decline impacts not only on the person with dementia, but also on their informal carers and health and aged care systems. With the number of people with dementia rapidly increasing and few effective treatments, there is now a critical need for interventions to improve functional ability in those with the condition. Aims and objective This study assesses the effectiveness of a community-based home exercise programme in improving cognitive and physical function and independence in activities of daily living (ADL) in people with Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia. Methods In a 4-month randomized controlled trial, 40 community-dwelling patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and their informal carers were randomly allocated to either the treatment (exercise plus usual treatment) or control (usual treatment) group. The exercise programme consisted of daily exercises and walking under the supervision of their carer. Patients were assessed at baseline and 4-months follow-up by a blinded assessor on primary outcome measures of cognitive and physical function and ADL using standardized assessment scales. Results Sixteen men and 24 women diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease participated in the study. They had a mean age of 74.1 years (range 51-89) and a mean Mini Mental State Examination score of 22.0 (range 10-28), indicating mild to moderate dementia. At 4-months follow-up, patients who exercised, compared with controls, had improved cognition (increased Mini Mental State Examination scores by 2.6 points, p Conclusion This study suggests that participation in a community-based exercise programme can improve cognitive and physical function and independence in ADL in people with Alzheimer's disease.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Vreugdenhil, A., Cannell, J., Davies, A., & Razay, G. (2012). A community-based exercise programme to improve functional ability in people with Alzheimer's disease: a randomized controlled trial. Scandinavian journal of caring sciences. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6712.2011.00895.x
Vancouver
Vreugdenhil A, Cannell J, Davies A, Razay G. A community-based exercise programme to improve functional ability in people with Alzheimer's disease: a randomized controlled trial. Scandinavian journal of caring sciences. 2012. doi:10.1111/j.1471-6712.2011.00895.x. PMID: 21564154.
BibTeX
@article{vreugdenhil2012-21564154,
author = {Vreugdenhil, A. and Cannell, J. and Davies, A. and Razay, G.},
title = {{A community-based exercise programme to improve functional ability in people with Alzheimer's disease: a randomized controlled trial}},
journal = {Scandinavian journal of caring sciences},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.1111/j.1471-6712.2011.00895.x},
pmid = {21564154},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6712.2011.00895.x}
}
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Key findings
- Rationale Dementia is a common neurodegenerative condition in older age associated with functional decline across multiple domains.
- Results Sixteen men and 24 women diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease participated in the study.
- At 4-months follow-up, patients who exercised, compared with controls, had improved cognition (increased Mini Mental State Examination scores by 2.6 points, p < 0.001), better mobility (2.9 seconds faster on Timed Up and Go, p = 0.004) and increased Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scores by 1.6 (p = 0.007).
Why it matters
In this randomized trial of 40 people with Alzheimer's disease, those who did a 4-month home exercise program with their carer improved cognition compared with controls. The sample was small, so this suggests exercise may help function but does not show it cures or prevents Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Study designrandomized controlled trial
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 61/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomised controlled trial. Scored zero for sample size and effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Scandinavian journal of caring sciences) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences: journal h-index 108 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised controlled trial |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2012 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 2 / 2 | Randomised and blinded or placebo-controlled (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 297 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 18.6 citations a year over 16 year(s) since 2012 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 6.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 16 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 52 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author George Razay: h-index 13 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | University of Tasmania: institution h-index 564 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 21564154) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 61 / 100 | — |
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