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Objective: To examine the effectiveness of a 12-week board game intervention for seniors with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in improving cognitive functioning and scores on the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) scale. Methods: A single-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted to collect data from a long-term care facility in central Taiwan. Sixty-eight MCI seniorswere recruited and randomized into a board game group (trial group) and a health promotion group (control group). Participants in both groups received a 2-hour intervention once a week for 12 weeks, with the trial group receiving 12 weeks of board games and the control group receiving 12 weeks of health promotion activities. Before and after the intervention, the primary assessment was conducted using the Saint Louis University Mental Status Exam, Contextual Memory Test, and Trail Making Test part-A; the secondary assessment was conducted using the IADL scale. Results: The results of the primary assessment indicated that the participants in the trial group showed significant differences in immediate recall and delayed recall compared to the control group (p < 0.01). The results of the secondary assessment indicated that participants in the trial group differed significantly (p < 0.01) only on the item of using the telephone compared to the control group. Conclusions: Compared to the health-promoted MCI seniors, those who participated in the board game had significant improvements in memory (immediate recall and delayed recall), but not in IADL (except for using the telephone). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Both Flexi-Bar and Multi-Component exercises can improve an individual's physical fitness and musculoskeletal discomfort. However, determining which is more effective in enhancing the physical fitness, and musculoskeletal discomfort of older adults remains controversial. Objective: This study aims to investigate differences in the effectiveness of Flexi-Bar and Multi-Component exercises in improving the frailty, physical fitness, and musculoskeletal discomfort of older adults after 12 weeks of intervention. Methods: A single-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted to collect data in central Taiwan. Participants were randomly assigned into a Flexi-Bar group (FB group) and a Multi-Component exercise group (MCE group). Participants in the FB group performed a 60-minute Flexi-Bar exercise every week for 12 consecutive weeks; participants in the MCE group performed a 60-minute Multi-Component exercise everyweek for 12 consecutiveweeks. Before and after the intervention, the assessmentwas conducted using the Kihon Checklist, Senior Fitness Test, and Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire. Results: A total of 80 participants (16 males) were recruited (age = 75.7 ≥ 7.3 years). The results showed that the improvements of the FB group participants in the 2-minute step test, back scratch test, and number of body parts with discomfort were more significant than those of the participants in the MCE group. Conclusion: This study found that the cardiopulmonary function, upper body flexibility, and musculoskeletal discomfort of the FB group participants improved more significantly than those in the MCE group. This finding indicated that a Flexi-Bar exercise was a more effective intervention for older adults than a Multi-Component exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]