Functional balance among community-dwelling older adults: a comparison of their history of falls

Background: Human balance is a complex motor task. Its maintenance is essential to accomplishing daily tasks. The aging process and the chronic diseases that affect older adults lead to serious balance disorders, thus making such individuals more susceptible to falls. Objectives: To evaluate the functional balance of community-dwelling older adults and to make a comparison between those with no history of falls, those with one fall and those with recurrent falls. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out. The sample was composed of 96 individuals from the community aged 65 years or older. They were divided equally into three groups according to their reported history of falls over the preceding year. Functional balance was evaluated using the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Timed up and Go Test (TUGT). Results: The older adults with a history of one fall or recurrent falls had longer performance times in the TUGT than did those with no history of falls, and this difference was statistically significant (p=0.002). In the BBS evaluation, the older adults with a history of recurrent falls scored significantly lower than those with no history of falls (p=0.013). A moderate association was found between the BBS and TUGT results in the three groups (p<0.001). Conclusion: The older adults with a history of falls performed poorly in the functional balance evaluation compared to those with no history of falls. These data demonstrate the importance of the balance tests in clinical practice as screening tools for older adults who are more susceptible to falls.