FALL RISK FACTORS IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS: AN UMBRELLA REVIEW OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS
2024

Risk Factors for Falls in Older Adults

Sample size: 57 publication Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Saunders Stephanie, D’Amore Cassandra, Hao Qiukui, Kuspinar Ayse, Richardson Julie, Beauchamp Marla

Primary Institution: McMaster University

Hypothesis

What are the risk factors for falls among community-dwelling older adults?

Conclusion

Physical risk factors for falls are well established, but there is a need for more research on psychosocial and environmental factors.

Supporting Evidence

  • We screened 8,173 records and included 57 reviews.
  • Thirty-three reviews conducted meta-analyses.
  • Reviews reported risk factors across every construct of the WHO’s ICF model.

Takeaway

Falls can hurt older people, and we found many reasons why they happen, but we need to learn more about other reasons.

Methodology

We reviewed systematic reviews and meta-analyses from various databases focusing on falls risk factors in older adults.

Limitations

Heterogeneity of reported effect sizes made it difficult to calculate pooled magnitudes for risk factors.

Participant Demographics

Community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and above.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1093/geroni/igae098.3365

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