Analysis of Plantar Tactile Sensitivity in Older Women after Conventional Proprioceptive Training and Exergame

Objective: To evaluate and compare the effects of conventional proprioceptive training and games with motion monitoring on plantar tactile sensitivity in older women.

Methods: A randomized controlled clinical trial, with 50 older women randomized into three groups: conventional proprioception (n = 17), games with motion monitoring (n = 16), and the control (n = 17). They underwent 24 intervention sessions, three times a week, for eight weeks. The conventional proprioception group performed exercises involving gait, balance, and proprioception. The games performed by the motion monitoring group included exercises using the Xbox Kinect One video game from Microsoft^®. The evaluation of tactile pressure sensitivity was performed using Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments. Intragroup comparisons between the two paired samples were performed using paired Student's t-test or Wilcoxon test. Intergroup comparisons between the three independent samples were performed using the Kruskal-Wallis test and Dunn's post hoc test, with p ≤ 0.05.

Results: The older women submitted to conventional games with motion monitoring training and showed improvement in plantar tactile sensitivity in the right and left feet. When comparing the intergroup results, the two training modalities obtained an improvement in the plantar tactile sensitivity of the older women when compared to the control group.

Conclusions: We conclude that both training modalities may favor the improvement of plantar tactile sensitivity in older women, with no significant differences between conventional and virtual training.