THE BENEFITS OF TAI-CHI EXERCISE ON BALANCE CONTROL IN ELDERLY DURING STAIR-TO-FLOOR TRANSITION

The purpose of this study is to investigate the benefits of Tai-Chi Exercise on balance control in elderly during the stair-to-floor transition. Twelve Tai-Chi elder participants and 12 normal healthy elderly were recruited. A Kistler force plate (1000Hz) obtained the COP (center of pressure) data and kinematics calculated from ten Vicon high-speed cameras (250Hz). Results revealed that Tai-Chi group descended at a faster speed and had larger step length. Tai-Chi group also had larger A-P (anteroposterior) COM-COP separation, A-P COP path and faster COP average velocity. The results indicated that long-term Tai-Chi exercise can improve the balance in elderly during the stair-to-floor transition