All that jazz gives seniors a boost

Sunday, Nov. 20, 2005 | 7:40 a.m.

Dancing along to Aretha Franklin's "Respect" at an off-campus UNLV dance studio near the Liberace Museum, Vickie Pieper makes up for her few missed steps with a smile that exudes confidence.

Like many of the dancers in UNLV's senior jazz class, Pieper is not about to try out for a music video anytime soon. But she's certainly having a ball.

And according to an ongoing study by two of the university's nursing professors, she and her classmates are also measurably improving their balance, as well as their coordination, memory and mental well-being.

Fourteen women from the class, ages 63 to 90, are voluntarily serving as guinea pigs in a study investigating the effects of the jazz class on senior health.

Using a special machine that measures how well students are able to balance on a tilting platform, nursing professors Patricia Alpert and Sally Miller are comparing the students' starting scores from the beginning of the semester to their scores midway through the jazz class and again at the end of the semester.

The nursing professors are similarly administering memory and cognitive learning tests as well as depression quizzes designed for senior citizens, Alpert said.

The midterm measurements showed a significant improvement in balance among most of the women, although no measurable improvement in other areas.

Anecdotally, however, the students say they have seen vast improvement in how they move and feel from learning the simple jazz movements.

"I've noticed a definite improvement in my balance, in my breathing, in my ability to learn," Pieper said, echoing the sentiments of her classmates.

Alpert said she is amazed by how much balance students have gained.

"We weren't expecting to see improvement this quickly," Alpert said.

The professors earned a $20,000 grant from federal money allocated to UNLV's School of Nursing to conduct the study, which is paying the students for their time and travel. Alpert said she hopes to use the data from the study to gain more grant money from the National Institute of Health to conduct a wider, long-term study involving 200 seniors.

The senior population in the Las Vegas Valley is rich for research, Alpert said. Balance is a particularly important area of study because it helps seniors prevent falls and broken hips.

There is little academic research on the ways that seniors can improve their balance, and none looking at the effect of dance classes such as jazz, Alpert said.

She decided to investigate the health benefits after seeing improvement in her own balance and memory after taking a UNLV beginning jazz class.

Dance professors Richard Havey and Carole Rae teach the senior class as part of UNLV's program in gerontology, and many of their students have been coming back each semester since the class began in the fall of 2004.

Rae said she hoped the data would support the opening of more senior programs at UNLV and across the country.

The senior dancers, who regularly perform their routines at assisted-living homes, seconded that hope.

"Nobody ever leaves without a smile on their face," dancer Eilah Cheek said. "It's just inspiring."

The physical and mental agility needed to learn the steps is the best way to offset old age, dancer Ann Vizzaccero said.

"That is as great as any crossword puzzle," Vizzaccero said.

Christina Littlefield may be reached at (702) 259-8813 or at clittle@ lasvegassun.com.