YOUR FITNESS YOUR HEALTH

Exercise Recommendations For The Elderly.      Geriatrics is a branch of medicine that deals with the problems and diseases associated with elderly people above 65 years and the aging process. As people age, they go through physiological process that are natural and likely enhanced by certain conditions ( example, inactivity, environmental factors).For the purpose of description, the elderly are divided into the old age(65-74 years of age),the very old age (75-84 years of age),and the oldest old (older than 85 years of age).Although these groups chronologically categorize the elderly, they are a heterogeneous group of individuals in terms of physiological status and there is overlap between groups.       Medical History Mrs X is a 75 -year-old black  woman who has a history of falling and osteoarthritis in her hands. She has been a House wife for most of her life and has never performed any type of regular physical activity. She lives by herself and has smoked half a pack of cigarettes

  MUSCLE TESTING Manual muscle tests are used to determine the extent and degree of muscular weakness resulting from disease, injuring or disuse. The records obtained from the tests provide a basis for planning therapeutic procedures and for periodic retesting, which can be utilized in evaluating these procedures. Muscle testing is therefore an important tool for all members for the health team dealing with the physical residual of disability.           The public and the health professions are demanding a total approach to patient treatment. The emphasis is changing from “Sick Care” to “Health Care” through the pursuit of comprehensive, continuous and coordinated care. Consequently physicians, physical therapists, occupational therapists, nurses and their supporting personnel have need for varying levels of knowledge and ability in muscle testing in their concern for preventing disability, habilitating those who have never known normal function, restoring those with disability t