Impact of falling on social participation and social support trajectories in a middle-aged and elderly European sample

<0.001). For social participation, this effect was moderated by frailty; the interaction term between frailty and fall highlighted the finding that frailty better explained the global trajectory of social participation compared with falling. Social support did not buffer the negative impact of falling on social participation. Falls can be considered stressful events that have implications beyond the health context. Frail people who have fallen should be targeted in prevention and rehabilitation programmes; specific attention should also be paid to the relatives of fallers, who appeared to be more intensively solicited after a fall.