Effects of Japanese drum exercise on depression and physical function in community-dwelling older women

Abstract

Background/Purpose: We examined whether a 3-month Japanese drum exercise program can ameliorate depressive mood and improve physical fitness in community-dwelling older women. Methods: The participants were 40 community-dwelling older women aged 65 years and older who satisfied one or more of the mood items on the Kihon checklist. They were divided into two groups: a 3-month Japanese drum exercise group and a control group. The study included 21 women who participated in Japanese drum exercises (mean age, 76.8 ± 5.2 years) and 19 control participants (79.8 ± 5.4 years). To evaluate the participants' psychological status, we used the depression item (D) on the short form of the profile of mood states. The body composition of participants was determined using bioelectrical impedance analysis. In addition, gait speed, grip strength, and scores on the morale scale, the geriatric depression scale, the trail making test, and the mini-mental state examination were measured before and after the intervention. Results: After the 3-month intervention, we found no significant main effect-induced differences (p = 0.135) in Profile of Mood States between the groups. No significant difference was found between groups for any of the psychophysiological or physical fitness measures after the intervention. Conclusion: Our results did not support the hypothesis that the Japanese drum exercise can improve depressive mood in older women. However, depressive mood showed a slight improvement in the intervention group, suggesting that a longer or more frequent session of intervention might have had an effect.