An Approach to the Assessment of Risk of Falls in the Elderly

-Probe Reaction Time during Stepping-

Abstract

In this study, we evaluated motor function and cognition of elderly people and studied their relevance to falls. We divided 101 people into two groups: fallers and non-fallers. The items measured were probe reaction time while stepping, Trail Marking Test part-A, Timed Up and Go Test, 10 m free speed walking and the time taken for a step cycle. The results for the Timed Up and Go Test, 10 m free speed walking, probe reaction time while stepping and Trail Marking Test part A in the falling group were significantly extended and the coefficient of variation of time of step cycle was also significantly increased. From the evaluation of the logistic regression analysis with a fall as the dependent variable and the ROC curve, the cut-off value of probe reaction time while stepping was 497 msec. These results suggest that the probe reaction time while stepping is effective for the evaluation of fall risk in elderly people.