A 30-day kendama program for community-dwelling elderly: Effects on participants' physical and cognitive functions and the practicality of the program

Watanabe T, Hirowatari H, Tokura Y, Takeda K, Hanaoka H. A 30-day kendama program for community-dwelling elderly: Effects on participants' physical and cognitive functions and the practicality of the program. Jpn J Compr Rehabil Sci 2024; 15: 34-41.

Purpose: This study examined the effects of a 30-day kendama program on physical and cognitive functions and the practicality of the program for community-dwelling elderly individuals to reduce the risk of dementia and musculoskeletal disorders.

Method: Seventeen community-dwelling elderly persons aged ≥65 years participated in a 30-day kendama program wherein they practiced kendama in groups once a week for a total of four times and individually for at least 20 minutes a day for 30 days. The frequency and duration of the group and individual practices were surveyed to assess the practicality of the program.

Results: The physical function assessment revealed that knee extension muscle strength increased significantly by 18.8% after the intervention (p < 0.01). Further, the cognitive function assessment showed that the time required to perform the Stroop test decreased by 10.1%, the number of Symbol Digit Modalities Tests (SDMTs) performed increased by 5.6%, and the number of correct answers in the word memory test increased by 17.8% after the intervention, with each showing a significant change (p < 0.05). The results of the questionnaire on the participants' 30-day kendama program showed that approximately 30% answered that the frequency of individual practice was "a little too much," indicating that the program needed to be modified.

Conclusion: The results of this study suggested that kendama can be enjoyed easily and is expected to be practiced continuously with friends. Therefore, kendama can serve as an exercise program for reducing the risk of dementia and musculoskeletal disorders. In the future, it will be necessary to reconsider the frequency of individual kendama practice.