Daily-Life Gait Quality as Predictor of Falls in Older People: A 1-Year Prospective Cohort Study.

ABSTRACT: Falls can have devastating consequences for older people. We determined the relationship between the likelihood of fall incidents and daily-life behavior. We used wearable sensors to assess habitual physical activity and daily-life gait quality (in terms of e.g. stability, variability, smoothness and symmetry), and determined their predictive ability for time-to-first-and-second-falls. 319 older people wore a trunk accelerometer (Dynaport MoveMonitor, McRoberts) during one week. Participants further completed questionnaires and performed grip strength and trail making tests to identify risk factors for falls. Their prospective fall incidence was followed up for six to twelve months. We determined interrelations between commonly used gait characteristics to gain insight in their interpretat

SUBMITTER: van Schooten KS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4936679 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature