An aging generation with multiple chronic conditions will challenge the future healthcare system and society in general. Healthy aging is therefore a theme that is more important than ever before.
Many elderly patients, after hospital discharge, are placed in one of the approximately 3,500 temporary round-the-clock rehabilitation spots in the municipality. In recent years, municipalities have strengthened the prevention efforts against unnecessary readmissions, and to enable citizens to be discharged more quickly from the hospital [1].
In 2018, nearly 50% of Danish hospital-admitted patients were over 65 years old. This corresponds to approximately 600,000 admissions [2], and of these, about 20% are readmitted within 30 days [3].
The risk of readmission is directly linked to the individual patient's physical capabilities [4]. Studies show that elderly patients are physically inactive for 77-98% of their hospital stay [5, 6, 7].
The combination of prolonged physical inactivity and old age is an ignored problem. Physical inactivity has serious and well-documented consequences on the skeletal, muscular, and cardiovascular systems [8]. Even short-term physical inactivity in the elderly significantly reduces fitness and muscle mass [9].
Physical inactivity among the elderly causes over 50,000 additional somatic hospital admissions annually. The treatment and care for physical inactivity cost the Danish society nearly 5 billion kroner annually and also cause more than 5,000 deaths [10].
Physical inactivity during hospitalization rapidly reduces the physical functions of elderly citizens, thus reducing their self-reliance, whereas physical activity can reduce the decline in physical functionality among elderly citizens [11] and even reverse the trend during hospitalization [11].
Just 15-20 minutes of chair-based physical activity per day can shorten the length of hospital stay by 20% [6], thereby reducing hospitalization costs [12].
This is particularly the case with activities aimed at improving physical endurance, such as seated cycling training [13]. Seated cycling is a gentle, safe, and effective form of exercise for elderly citizens [14], and builds self-reliance in central ADL functions [15], such as standing up and taking several steps [16].
For older cognitively challenged citizens (e.g., with dementia), the great advantage of cycling training is its fundamental ability to increase the citizen's physical strength and sustained stability in the legs [13]. A seated bicycle is safe for citizens with balance challenges. At the same time, it is gentle because even from a very low physical performance starting point, it can gradually build physical strength [14].
A study has found that (max) 15 minutes of seated cycling about 4 times a week, in just 3 weeks, increased the average cycling distance of elderly citizens by 26% [16].
The result was a significant difference in the ability to walk (both distance and speed), improved both training duration and power/strength, as well as the ability to rise from a sitting position [16]. Just 100 steps a day have been proven to result in a 10% reduction in the risk of physical complications such as disease recurrence [17].
Research shows that cycling makes older individuals 9-17% more efficient at walking [18].
Cycling trains the leg muscles used to take steps far more effectively than the equivalent time spent on a walk [18, 19]. But cycling training also acts as a preventative for health risk areas, such as fall prevention.
30% of elderly Danish citizens living at home, and 50% of citizens in nursing homes, fall at least once a year [20].
Citizens with dementia are at twice the risk for fall incidents and recover more slowly afterward [20, 21].
Falls can lead to serious, lasting injuries for older citizens [20]. With reduced efficiency of an older citizen's locomotor-based functions, such as balance, coordination, stride length, and endurance, the risk of falling incidents increases [13]. With endurance-based physical activity, such as seated cycling training, the citizen's physical abilities are improved to a degree where it has been directly proven as an effective method for fall prevention [13].
References can be found HERE.
