Resumen

ROQUE ALVAREZ, Odalys; TURA DIAZ, Mariela; TORRES MARIN, Juan  y  MEDINA MARTINEZ, Lázara. Practice of Tai Chi in the elderly, an alternative to better longevity. Rev Ciencias Médicas [online]. 2012, vol.16, n.3, pp.95-108. ISSN 1561-3194.

Tai Chi Chuan is a martial art which is very effective to prolong life. A study aimed at showing the effectiveness of Tai Chi in the elderly was carried out by means of an intervention-action research during 2009-2010. The target group and the sample of the study were comprised of 60 old people who practice Tai Chi at “Viento de Otoño” Circle, Pinar del Rio municipality. Data were collected from the individual clinical histories and from a survey prepared by the author; obtaining the general data of patients, together with the variables: age, sex, polypharmacy, geriatric assessment (psychological, social, biomedical and functional view points). Qualitative data were summed up in absolute frequencies and relative percentages. Comparison of proportion tests to prove the existence or not of significant differences in some indicators, before and after the practice of Tai Chi. The most frequent group of ages was 60-64 where female sex prevailed. After the practice of Tai Chi: polypharmacy decreased, evidencing psychological convalescence, and observing a mild rehabilitation in the biomedical plus social assessment. Social appraisal was the only that did not present significant differences regarding the proportion of old people with mild social risks before and after Tai Chi practice. The majority of the old people became independent to perform instrumented daily-life activities.

Palabras clave : TAI JI [methods]; Longevity [physiology]; Geriatric assessment [classification].

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