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A randomized controlled trial of an activity specific exercise program for individuals with Alzheimer disease in long-term care settings
Roach KE, Tappen RM, Kirk-Sanchez N, Williams CL, Loewenstein D.. Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001), 2011-04-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Objective To determine whether an activity specific exercise program could improve ability to perform basic mobility activities in long-term care residents with Alzheimer disease (AD). Design Randomized, controlled, single-blinded clinical trial. Setting Residents of 7 long-term care facilities. Participants Eighty-two long-term care residents with mild to severe AD. Intervention An activity specific exercise program was compared to a walking program and to an attention control. Measurements Ability to perform bed mobility and transfers was assessed using the subscales of the Acute Care Index of Function; functional mobility was measured using the 6-Minute Walk test. Results Subjects receiving the activity specific exercise program improved in ability to perform transfers, whereas subjects in the other 2 groups declined.
Key findings
- Intervention An activity specific exercise program was compared to a walking program and to an attention control.
- Results Subjects receiving the activity specific exercise program improved in ability to perform transfers, whereas subjects in the other 2 groups declined.
Why it matters
In this trial of 82 long-term care residents with Alzheimer's disease, an activity-specific exercise program improved ability to perform transfers while the other groups declined. This is a functional benefit from exercise and does not indicate that exercise treats or prevents the disease itself.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 59/100
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 (Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001)) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Journal of Geriatric Physical Therapy: journal h-index 67 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised controlled trial (from PubMed type “Randomized 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 | 2011 — 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 | 4 / 7 | Cited 81 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 4.8 citations a year over 17 year(s) since 2011 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 5 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 5 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author David Loewenstein: h-index 65 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Miami: institution h-index 998 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | PubMed indexes it as a multicentre study |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 21937893) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 59 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
- DOI: 10.1519/jpt.0b013e31820aab9c
- PubMed: 21937893
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Roach, K. E., Tappen, R. M., Kirk-Sanchez, N., Williams, C. L., & Loewenstein, D. (2011). A randomized controlled trial of an activity specific exercise program for individuals with Alzheimer disease in long-term care settings. Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001). https://doi.org/10.1519/jpt.0b013e31820aab9c
Vancouver
Roach KE, Tappen RM, Kirk-Sanchez N, Williams CL, Loewenstein D. A randomized controlled trial of an activity specific exercise program for individuals with Alzheimer disease in long-term care settings. Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001). 2011. doi:10.1519/jpt.0b013e31820aab9c. PMID: 21937893.
BibTeX
@article{roach2011-21937893,
author = {Roach, K. E. and Tappen, R. M. and Kirk-Sanchez, N. and Williams, C. L. and Loewenstein, D.},
title = {{A randomized controlled trial of an activity specific exercise program for individuals with Alzheimer disease in long-term care settings}},
journal = {Journal of geriatric physical therapy (2001)},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1519/jpt.0b013e31820aab9c},
pmid = {21937893},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1519/jpt.0b013e31820aab9c}
}
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