Investigating the predictive ability of gait speed and quadriceps strength for incident falls in community-dwelling older women at high risk of fracture

Abstract

Gait speed is a recommended geriatric assessment of physical performance, but may not be regularly examined in clinical settings. We aimed to investigate whether quadriceps strength tests demonstrate similar predictive ability for incident falls as gait speed in older women. We investigated 135 female volunteers aged mean. ±. SD 76.7. ±. 5.0 years (range 70-92) at high risk of fracture. Participants completed gait speed assessments using the GAITRite Electronic Walkway System, and quadriceps strength assessments using a hand-held dynamometer (HHD). Participants reported incident falls monthly for 3.7. ±. 1.2 years. N=. 99 (73%) participants fell 355 times during the follow-up period (mean fa..