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Symposium

Health Sciences

Interdisciplinary Approaches to Epidemiology and Prevention of Falls in Older Adults

Thursday, November 9, 2023
4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
Location: Room 413

    Chair(s)

  • Wenjun Li, PhD

    Professor and Chair of Public Health
    Department of Public Health
    University of Massachusetts Lowell
    Lowell, Massachusetts, United States

    Slides

    • Discussant(s)

  • Wenjun Li, PhD

    Professor and Chair of Public Health
    Department of Public Health
    University of Massachusetts Lowell
    Lowell, Massachusetts, United States

    Slides

    • Individual Symposium Abstract First Author(s)

  • Yuanjin Zhou, PhD (she/her/hers)

    Assistant Professor
    Steve Hicks School of Social Work
    University of Texas at Austin
    Austin, Texas, United States

  • LC

    Lingming Chen, MPH (she/her/hers)

    Doctoral Student
    Department of Public Health
    University of Massachusetts Lowell
    Lowell, Massachusetts, United States

    Slides
  • QL

    Qun Le, MS (she/her/hers)

    Research Project Director
    Department of Public Health
    University of Massachusetts Lowell
    Lowell, Massachusetts, United States

    Slides

  • Ladda Thiamwong, PhD, RN. FAAN

    Associate Professor
    College of Nursing
    University of Central Florida
    Orlando, Florida, United States

    Slides

Prevention of falls is important to independent living and good health in older age. This symposium brings together five interdisciplinary studies on falls among community-dwelling older adults. The first presentation examines the relationship between multisite pain and fear of falling among older adults with dementia. The second discusses the differential effects of anxiety on indoor vs. outdoor falls. The cohort study found that anxiety was associated with higher rate of indoor but not outdoor falls. The third investigates racial differences in association of accelerometer measured physical activity with indoor and outdoor falls. The study found that a 30-minutes increase in moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity was associated with 25% lower rate of indoor falls and 42% higher rate of outdoor falls among non-White but not White participants, an interesting example of effect modification by race and location of falls. The fourth reports findings of a cross-sectional survey of older adults in Thailand which observed high prevalence of falls, and substantial differences in fear of falling, daily activities and quality of life between fallers and non-fallers, and between persons with and without fear of falling. The fifth reports rural-urban differences in circumstances and correlates of falls from the same study in Thailand. The study found higher fall rates, higher level of fear of falling and worse general health in urban than rural residents, highlighting the need for considering urban-rural differences in falls prevention. Together, these studies demonstrate the complexity and promises of interdisciplinary approaches to falls research.

Learning Objectives:

  • Define and describe circumstances of and behavioral and health risk factors for falls, fall injuries, fear of falling.
  • Describe the interdisciplinary nature of falls epidemiology and prevention research.
  • List common sociodemographic, psychosocial, medical, behavioral, environmental risk factors for falls, and differential influences of psychosocial and demographic factors on indoor and outdoor falls.

Presentations:

  • 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
    Association Between Pain and Fall Worry Among Community-Dwelling Older People With Dementia in the United States

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Yuanjin Zhou, PhD (she/her/hers) – University of Texas at Austin

  • 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
    The Association of Anxiety With Indoor and Outdoor Falls Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Lingming Chen, MPH (she/her/hers) – University of Massachusetts Lowell

  • 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
    Racial Differences in Association of Objectively Measured Physical Activity With Indoor and Outdoor Falls

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Qun Le, MS (she/her/hers) – University of Massachusetts Lowell

  • 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
    Falls, Fear of Falling, Daily Activities, and Quality of Life in Thai Community-Dwelling Older Adults
  • 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
    Urbanization, Falls, and Fear of Falling in Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Thailand

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Ladda Thiamwong, PhD, RN. FAAN – University of Central Florida