Abstract
(1) Background: The present study aimed to examine physical, cognitive and emotional factors affecting falls in community-dwelling older adults with and without pain; (2) Methods: Data from 789 older adults who participated in a community-based health survey were analyzed. Participants completed questionnaires on the presence of pain and previous falls. Muscle weakness (handgrip strength < 26.0 kg for men and < 18.0 kg for women) and low skeletal muscle mass (appendicular skeletal muscle mass index < 7.0 kg/m2 for men and < 5.7 kg/m2 for women) were determined. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and depressive symptoms were assessed using the National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology-Functional Assessment Tool and 15-item geriatric depression scale (GDS-15), respectively; (3) Results: In participants with pain, MCI and GDS-15 were associated with previous falls after adjusting for age, sex, education and medication use. In participants without pain, muscle weakness and low skeletal muscle mass were associated with previous falls when adjusting for the above covariates; (4) Conclusions: Falls in participants with pain were associated with cognitive and emotional factors, whereas falls in those without pain were associated with physical factors. Fall prevention interventions for older adults with pain may require tailored strategies to address cognitive and emotional factors.
Highlights
More than one third of people aged 65 years or older fall at least once per year, with about half doing so recurrently [1]
Comparisons of Physical, Cognitive and Emotional Factors Between the Fallers and NonFallers Stratified by the Pain Status
Regarding cognitive function and emotional status, the pain groups performed worse than the nonpain group in the immediate and delayed word list memory and SDST tests (p = 0.021, p = 0.006 and p = 0.014, respectively) and had higher GDS-15 scores (p < 0.001)
Summary
More than one third of people aged 65 years or older fall at least once per year, with about half doing so recurrently [1]. Between 20% and 30% of those who fall suffer moderate to severe injuries, including fractures and head trauma, which can lead to disability, early admission to nursing homes and even death [2,3]. Pain is common in community-dwelling older adults, with prevalence rates ranging from. Pain has been identified as a significant risk factor for falls in community-dwelling. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 4960; doi:10.3390/ijerph17144960 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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