Aim: To examine the relationship between falls among high-risk older adults at one Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) and the COVID-19 closure of its Day Health Center (DHC), which provides participants with social and rehabilitative services and contributes to their weekly physical activity. Methods: Self-reported falls during the 3 months before the DHC’s closure (“pre–COVID-19”) were compared in number and in character to falls during its closure (“COVID-19”). Results: One thirty five participants were enrolled during the entire 6-month period; 37% (n = 50) fell during this time. These participants experienced fewer falls during COVID-19 (mean = 0.64) than they did pre–COVID-19 (mean=1.24, p = .0003). Conclusions: In this population of high-risk, community-dwelling older adults, an abrupt reduction in activity levels may have reduced falls. Physical activity has been shown to both increase and protect against falls in older adults. The long-term consequences of a comparably prolonged period of inactivity merit further study.
AlmeidaP. H. T. Q.BernardoL. D.PontesT. B.DavisJ. A.DeodoroT. M. S.FerreiraR. G.SouzaK. I.MacDermidJ. C. (2021). Short-term impact of social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic on cognitive function and health perception of Brazilian older adults: A pre-post study. Journal of Applied Gerontology: The Official Journal of the Southern Gerontological Society, 40(9), 934–942. https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648211015458
2.
BellK. E.von AllmenM. T.DevriesM. C.PhillipsS. M. (2016). Muscle disuse as a pivotal problem in sarcopenia-related muscle loss and dysfunction. The Journal of Frailty & Aging, 5(1), 33–41. https://doi.org/10.14283/jfa.2016.78
3.
BergK. O.Wood-DauphineeS. L.WilliamsJ. I.MakiB. (1992). Measuring balance in the elderly: Validation of an instrument. Canadian Journal of Public Health. Revue Canadienne de Sante Publique, 83(Suppl 2), S7–S11. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1468055
4.
BergenG.StevensM. R.BurnsE. R. (2016). Falls and fall injuries among adults aged ≥ 65 years — United States, 2014. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 65(37), 993–998. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6537a2.
5.
BreenL.StokesK. A.Churchward-VenneT. A.MooreD. R.BakerS. K.SmithK.AthertonP. J.PhillipsS. M. (2013). Two weeks of reduced activity decreases leg lean mass and induces “anabolic resistance” of myofibrillar protein synthesis in healthy elderly. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 98(6), 2604–2612. https://doi/org/10.1210/jc.2013-1502.
6.
BrodieM. A.OkuboY.AnnegarnJ.WiechingR.LordS. R.DelbaereK. (2017). Disentangling the health benefits of walking from increased exposure to falls in older people using remote gait monitoring and multi-dimensional analysis. Physiological Measurement, 38(1), 45–62. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6579/38/1/45
ChangN.-T.ChiL.-Y.YangN.-P.ChouP. (2010). The impact of falls and fear of falling on health-related quality of life in Taiwanese elderly. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 27(2), 84–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/07370011003704958
GanzD. A.LathamN. K. (2020). Prevention of falls in community-dwelling older adults. The New England Journal of Medicine, 382(8), 734–743. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMcp1903252
12.
GreggE. W.PereiraM. A.CaspersenC. J. (2000). Physical activity, falls, and fractures among older adults: A review of the epidemiologic evidence. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 48(8), 883–893. https://doi/org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2000.tb06884.x
13.
HoffmanG. J.MalaniP. N.SolwayE.KirchM.SingerD. C.KullgrenJ. T. (2021). Changes in activity levels, physical functioning, and fall risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17477
SherringtonC.FairhallN.WallbankG.TiedemannA.MichaleffZ. A.HowardK.ClemsonL.HopewellS.LambS. (2020). Exercise for preventing falls in older people living in the community: An abridged Cochrane systematic review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 54(15), 885–891. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2019-101512
21.
StenhagenM.EkströmH.NordellE.ElmståhlS. (2014). Accidental falls, health-related quality of life and life satisfaction: A prospective study of the general elderly population. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 58(1), 95–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.archger.2013.07.006
22.
Temkin-GreenerH.BajorskaA.MukamelD. B. (2008). Variations in service use in the program of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE): Is more better?The Journals of Gerontology. Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 63(7), 731–738. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/63.7.731
