commenced dementia medications in the last 3 months; or
already participating in resistance training or aerobic
exercise more than once a week. Eligibility for the study
was assessed during routine patient medical consultations
at the local hospital outpatient memory disorders clinic
over an 18-month period commencing July 2007. Of the
64 patients invited to participate in the study, 40 agreed.
The 24 patients who did not agree to participate had a
mean age of 77.7 years and 13 (54%) were men and 11
(46%) were women. The most common reason given for
nonparticipation was that patients or their carers were not
interested in exercising (12 or 50% of those who declined),
with others citing health issues (3) or being too busy (2).
Seven did not respond to the invitation to participate in the
study.