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Study summary · Muscle, strength & physical function

Can whole-body vibration improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions?

BMC Geriatr · 2018 · PMID 29343219 · DOI 10.1186/s12877-018-0712-8

Plain-English summary written and published by Magellan Longevity · medical review by Gabriel Radu, DO (physiatrist, NPI 1376861765). We summarize what the paper reported — we did not run this study.

The takeaway

Whole-body vibration may improve muscle mass, physical function, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia in institutional settings.

The question

Can whole-body vibration improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions?

What they tested

Whole-body vibration intervention will improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions.

How they did it

This quasi-experimental study used a single-group, pretest-posttest design. Older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions underwent a 3-month whole-body vibration intervention, training 3 times per week for 10 repetitions of 60 seconds with 30-second breaks. Skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life were measured before and after the intervention, and nonparametric statistical methods were used for analysis.

What they found

After 12 weeks of whole-body vibration, significant improvements were observed in skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness measures (standing on one foot, shoulder-arm flexibility, 8-ft up and go test, hand grip strength, and five repeated sit-to-stand tests), and quality of life.

What it means

Whole-body vibration intervention can improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions.

Limitations

The study used a quasi-experimental, single-group, pretest-posttest design, which may limit the generalizability and causal inference due to the lack of a control group.

“whole-body vibration improved the skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life”— from the published abstract, BMC Geriatr 2018

The paper at a glance

TitleWhole-body vibration on skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older people with sarcopenia
JournalBMC Geriatr
Year2018
PMID29343219 ↗
DOI10.1186/s12877-018-0712-8 ↗
TopicMuscle, strength & physical function

Read the source: PubMed record (authors, abstract, full citation) ↗ · Publisher via doi.org ↗

Where Magellan uses this paper

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Whole-Body Vibration Plate

Randomized trials and meta-analyses, mostly in postmenopausal women and older adults, suggest whole-body vibration improves lower-limb muscle strength (knee-extension SMD about 0.7 in one 18-trial analysis), balance, and everyday function such as sit-to-stand and walking speed, and may aid glycemic control in type 2…

Whole-Body Vibration Plate

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Molecules & mechanisms in this paper

Each of these is named in the paper’s own words above. Open the monograph for the full mechanism and its other citations.

Skeletal muscleGrip strength

Cite this page

These citations point at this summary. To cite the original paper with its full author list, use the PubMed record or doi.org.

APA
Magellan Longevity. (2026). Can whole-body vibration improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions? [Plain-English summary of BMC Geriatr 2018, PMID 29343219, DOI 10.1186/s12877-018-0712-8]. Magellan Longevity. https://magellanlongevity.com/study/d29343219.html
BibTeX
@misc{magellan_d29343219, title = {Can whole-body vibration improve skeletal muscle mass index, physical fitness, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia living in institutions?}, author = {{Magellan Longevity}}, year = {2026}, howpublished = {\url{https://magellanlongevity.com/study/d29343219.html}}, note = {Plain-English summary of PubMed PMID 29343219; DOI 10.1186/s12877-018-0712-8; BMC Geriatr 2018. Reviewed by Gabriel Radu, DO}, urldate = {2026-08-11} }
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How this summary was made. Every section above restates what the published abstract of PMID 29343219 reports — the question, the design, the numbers, the authors’ own conclusion and their stated limitations. We do not add claims the paper did not make, and we keep negative and no-effect findings in. Magellan’s evidence grades are set from research like this and never from affiliate commissions.

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Educational information, not medical advice. This is a plain-English summary of published research; it is not a treatment recommendation and nothing here is intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Individual studies can be wrong, and a single paper rarely settles a question. Talk to your physician before acting on any research, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medication.