Relationship among Age, Gender, Handicap and Functional Balance in Dizzy Patients

頭暈患者之年齡、性別、殘障與其功能性平衡之關係

蔡伊謹(I-Chin Tsai) ； 林桑伊(Sang-I Lin)

《物理治療》 29卷5期 (2004/10) Pp. 273-280

摘要

背景與目的：頭暈是相當常見的問題，且與殘障和平衡有關。頭暈的盛行率會隨著年齡增加而增加，且較好發於女性。但是，年齡與性別和殘障與功能性平衡之間的關係，卻很少被探討。因此，本篇的目的有二：(1)頭暈患者其年齡與性別是否會影響殘障與功能性平衡，和(2)頭暈患者功能性平衡與跌倒之間的相關。方法：總共有78位頭暈病患參與本篇研究。共分為年輕與年老患者兩組(以65歲為分界點)。殘障程度是以Dizziness Handicap Inventory(DHI)量測，而功能性平衡是以Dynamic Gait Index(DGI)和forward reach test量測之。紀錄所有的病患求診前六個月跌倒的狀況。結果：殘障方面，男性與女性在功能性殘障上有顯著的差異，女性會有較高的分數；而年輕患者與年老患者在身體上殘障有顯著差異，年輕人會有較高的分數。平衡方面，年輕患者在forward reach test上會比老年患者有較高的往前伸的距離。姿勢不穩定與跌倒之間沒有相關。結論：年輕患者會比年老患者較為殘障，女性患者會比男性患者較為殘障。年老的患者平衡能力較差。因此，頭暈患者的年紀與性別似乎是影響其殘障與平衡的因素。所以在臨床上，針對年輕且為女性的頭暈患者需要改善其引發的殘障問題，而針對年老患者則特別需要改善其平衡問題。

關鍵字

頭暈 ； 殘障 ； 功能性平衡 ； 年齡 ； 性別

並列摘要

Background and Purposes: Dizziness is a common problem and often associated with handicap and balance problems. The prevalence of dizziness increases with age, and is more prevalent among women. But little is known about the relationship among age, gender, disability, and balance ability. The purposes of this study were to determine the influence of age and gender on handicap and functional balance, and the association between functional balance and self-reported fall history in dizzy patients. Methods: Seventy eight patients who had dizziness symptoms were included and divided into young and old (cutoff=65 years) age groups. Handicap situation was measured by Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), and functional balance was measured by Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) and forward reach test. All of the patients were asked to report the fall history in the past six months. Results: There were significant differences in the functional aspect of handicap between males and females, and in physical aspect between young and older groups. The young group had a significantly higher disability score than the older group in the physical aspect, and females had a significantly higher disability score than males in the functional aspect. The young group also had significantly greater distance of forward reach than the older group. The scores of DGI were not significantly different between the two age and gender groups. Gait instability was not significantly related to fall history in all subjects. Conclusions: Age and gender appear to influence the handicap and balance in dizzy patients. Clinically, special attention should be directed to improving functional capacity
and preventing disability for young and female patients, and improving balance ability for older patients.

並列關鍵字

Dizziness ； Handicap ； Functional balance ； Age ； Gender