The Effect of Occupational Activities and Finger Exercise Program on Hand Grip Strength and Activities of Daily Living in Elderly Individuals With Dementia: Randomized Controlled Trial

The intervention group received the program three days a week (Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday), once daily, with sessions held from 10:00 to 12:00 in the morning and from 14:00 to 16:00 in the afternoon. The participants were divided into two subgroups (13 participants in the first group, 12 in the second). The intervention consisted of a combined occupational activities and finger exercise program. Each session began with finger exercises, followed by occupational activities. The finger exercises involved movements requiring the participation of the fingers, hands, and arms, and were performed in 10 progressive steps. These movements were designed to promote engagement without causing fatigue or discomfort in elderly participants. Occupational activities included threading beads, completing line patterns, sewing buttons, assembling wooden blocks, performing cutting exercises, limited painting, dough manipulation, cutting and gluing, wrapping rope, tying rope between two points, stack