Application of propensity scores to estimate the association between cardiovascular disease and meridian energy

Self-Perceived Health and Sleep Quality of Community Older Adults after Acupunch Exercises

OBJECTIVES

To test the long-term effects of the 12-month Healthy Beat Acupunch (HBA) exercise program on the self-perceived health and sleep quality of older adults in community care centers, and to compare the effects of two delivery methods: instructor-led HBA for the first 6 months and DVD-guided HBA for another 6 months.

DESIGN

Cluster-randomized controlled trial.

SETTING

Eight community care centers.

PARTICIPANTS

In total, 232 participants were recruited from eight community care centers, and cluster-randomized to the experimental (4 centers, N = 113) and control (4 centers, N = 119) groups.

INTERVENTION

The experimental group received the instructor-led HBA program 3 times weekly for the first 6 months, followed by the DVD-guided HBA program for another 6 months.

MEASUREMENTS

Self-perceived health and sleep quality were assessed using the Short Form Health Survey and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, respectively, at baseline and every 3 months for 1 year.

RESULTS

The experimental group reported more favorable self-perceived physical and mental health, higher subjective sleep quality, and less daytime dysfunction than did the control group. Effect sizes of physical health and sleep quality increased from the instructor-led stage to the DVD-guided stage; the effect size of physical health showed the most significant change, increasing from 0.38 in the instructor-led stage to 0.55 in the DVD-guided stage.

CONCLUSIONS

The exercise program consisting of the instructor-led class, followed by the DVD-guided class, was an effective and feasible longitudinal program for older adults in community care centers.

Meridian Cuffing Exercises Improved Functional Fitness and Cardiopulmonary Functioning of Community Older Adults

This study was aimed to test the effects of a meridian cuffing exercise, the Healthy Beat Acupunch (HBA) regimen, on the functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning of community older adults. A single-blind, cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted. We randomly allocated eight community care centers to the intervention or control group and recruited 228 participants who completed the study (intervention: four centers, n = 111; control: four centers, n = 117). The intervention group underwent a 40-min session of HBA regimen 3 times per week for 6 months. Functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months of the intervention. The intervention group demonstrated significantly greater improvements in functional fitness and cardiopulmonary functioning than the control group between baseline and either 3 months or 6 months. We suggest that activities designed to promote health among community older adults include acupunch exercises.