Risk of fall among older adults and its association with cognitive impairment in a semi-urban community

CONTEXT: Fall in older people is a major public health concern. Two-third of the death due to fall are preventable. Risk assessment in older adults therefore is the first step to identify the high-risk group to plan need-based intervention. AIMS: The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of risk of fall among older adults and its association with cognitive impairment and sociodemographic characteristics. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the field practice areas of the department of community medicine in a teaching hospital in South Kerala, India. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Berg Balance Scale and Mini-Cog Test were used for measuring risk of fall and cognitive impairment. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used for the statistical analysis using SPSS. Advanced age, female gender, and unemployed status were significantly associated with the risk of fall. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of fall prevalence was high and significantly related to cognitive impairment, advanced age, female gender, and occupational status, with more than half of those currently not working having a higher risk. The study would recommend regular follow-up of risk groups for prevention a good percentage of fall and thereby the related injuries.