Ability of Older People to Recognize Height and Characteristics of the Height Reproduction Task using the Body

Abstract

To consider the characteristics that influence falls in older adults, we assessed their ability to recognize obstacle height and compared it with younger adults. The LEG condition was used to reproduce the height of an object by raising the lower limb after gazing at it, and the STICK condition was used when the subject stopped the bar raised by the examiner from the floor with verbal instructions, and these were compared between the elderly and the young. There was a significant difference between the elderly and the young in the LEG condition, whereas there was no significant difference in the STICK condition. It was suggested that in older adults, the ability to reproduce recognized heights with the body is reduced.