The Effect of a 5-Week Wobble-Board Exercise Intervention on Ability to Discriminate Different Degrees of Ankle Inversion, Barefoot and Wearing Shoes: A Study in Healthy Elderly

OBJECTIVES: There is some evidence of an improvement in falls risk in the elderly after completing a wobble-board training program. This study examined the effects of wobble-board training on ability to discriminate between different extents of ankle inversion movements in a group of older subjects, tested wearing shoes and barefoot. DESIGN: A randomized, controlled, crossover pilot study. SETTING: Canberra region, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty community-dwelling subjects aged 65 to 85 participated in this study; all were in good health with no known disorder of the musculoskeletal system. MEASUREMENTS: The accuracy with which subjects could identify a set of ankle inversion movements of different extents was measured, with testing conducted in an upright, weightbearing stance. INTERVENTION: The effects of a 5-week training program using a wobble board modified for data logging or a period of normal activity only were assessed. Subjects underwent an ankle movement discrimination test pre- and posttraining, with shoes on and off. RESULTS: Greater improvement in ankle movement discrimination capability was made in subjects who underwent wobble-board training than in subjects who did not train (F_1,18 = 11.2, P =.003). Active movements at the ankle were also significantly better discriminated throughout when subjects were wearing shoes than when barefoot (F_1,18 = 40.6, P =.001). CONCLUSION: Training with a wobble board provides a simple in-home intervention that improves ability to differentiate between extent of movements into ankle inversion in subjects aged 65 and older. Research on trip and fall frequency after wobble-board use is needed before such training could be widely used.