Comparison of Motor Imagery Between the Elderly and the Pre-Elderly who Participated in Long-Term Care Prevention Classes

Abstract

The aim of this study was to clarify whether the motor imagery and motor skills of the participants, who took part in long-term care prevention classes, differed with age. The participants consisted of 39 individuals aged 65 years or older, who took part in long-term care prevention classes. To evaluate motor imagery, we used five items of the motor imagery test for toddlers (standing: 2; crawling: 1; sitting: 1; supine: 1). The evaluation was based on the scores for each item and the total score. The participants were divided into two age groups: the pre-elderly group (participants under 75 years of age) and the elderly group (participants aged 75 or older), and the two group’s scores were compared using Welch’s t-test. Of the 39 participants, 16 were in the pre-elderly group, and the remaining 23 were in the lderly group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in scores for the items pertaining to the standing, crawling, and supine positions. However, there was a significant difference between groups in scores for items pertaining to the sitting position and in the total scores. The aforementioned findings suggest that in comparison with the pre-elderly participants, the elderly face difficulty in motor imagery, including the number of changes in the body part increases, and that their motor imagery has also declined.