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Combined Impact of Physical Frailty and Social Isolation on Rate of Falls in Older Adults

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The journal of nutrition, health & aging

Abstract

Objectives

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of the combination of physical frailty and social isolation on falling in community-dwelling older adults.

Design

A cross-sectional study of data obtained at registration in a randomized control trial.

Setting

Community-based study of participants recruited from Toyota, Japan.

Participants

380 community-dwelling older adults (47.9% women, mean age = 72.3 ± 4.6 years).

Measurements

Participants were categorized as non-frail or pre-frail/frail based on the Fried frailty criteria (slowness, weakness, exhaustion, low activity, and weight loss). Social isolation was examined using the Lubben Social Network Scale (LSNS-6), and scores lower than 12 points indicated social isolation. Participants were divided into four groups depending on pre-frail/frail status and social isolation, and experiences of multiple falls over the past year were compared between the groups.

Results

Participants were classified into robust (n = 193), physical frailty (PF; n = 108), social isolation (SI; n = 43), and PF with SI (PF+SI; n = 36) groups. A total of 38 (10.0%) participants reported multiple falls. Logistic regression analysis showed that PF and SI groups were not independently associated with falling (PF: OR 1.64, 95% CI 0.65–4.16, SI: OR 2.25, 95% CI 0.77–6.58), while PF+SI group was significantly associated with falling compared with the robust group (OR 3.06, 95% CI 1.00–9.34, p = 0.049) after controlling for confounding factors.

Conclusion

Our findings support the assertion that coexistence with physical frailty and social isolation were associated with falling in the older adults.

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Acknowledgments

The Toyota Preventional Intervention for Cognitive decline and Sarcopenia study is supported by the Center of Innovation Program (COI STREAM), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rehabilitation and Care, Seijoh University, 2-172 Fukinodai, Tokai, Aichi, 476-8588, Japan

    T. Hayashi & T. Makino

  2. Institutes of Innovation for Future Society, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8601, Japan

    T. Hayashi, T. Makino, A. Inoue & M. Kuzuya

  3. Department of Community Healthcare and Geriatrics, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsuruma-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, 466-8550, Japan

    Hiroyuki Umegaki, C.H. Huang & M. Kuzuya

  4. Department of Preventive Gerontology, Center for Gerontology and Social Science, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, 35 Gengo, Morioka-machi, Obu, Aichi, 474-8511, Japan

    H. Shimada

Authors
  1. T. Hayashi
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  2. Hiroyuki Umegaki
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  3. T. Makino
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  4. C.H. Huang
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  5. A. Inoue
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  6. H. Shimada
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  7. M. Kuzuya
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hiroyuki Umegaki.

Ethics declarations

The study followed the principals of the Declaration of Helsinki. The study was approved by the ethical committee of the Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine.

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The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Hayashi, T., Umegaki, H., Makino, T. et al. Combined Impact of Physical Frailty and Social Isolation on Rate of Falls in Older Adults. J Nutr Health Aging 24, 312–318 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-020-1316-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-020-1316-5

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