been shown to elicit an acute growth hormone profile and neuromuscular performance responses immediately after the exercise.10
However, because of the lack of a non-WBV exercise control group, whether these changes in physical function parameters were attributable to the WBV exercise itself remain uncertain. Our previous randomized controlled trial in postmenopausal osteoporotic women (mean age 74.2 years) treated with alendronate showed that WBV exercise improved tandem standing time and walking velocity, but not TUG and chair-rising time compared with nonexercising controls.5 The present study confirmed that WBV exercise plus squat training was more effective for improving tandem gait step number (dynamic body balance) and chair-rising time (muscle power) than WBV exercise alone and was also well tolerated. Squat training might have trained the quadriceps and gluteus medius muscles and improved joint movement in the lower extremities, resulting in improvements in body balance and muscle power.