Developing a multivariate prediction model of falls among older community-dwelling adults using measures of neuromuscular control and proprioceptive acuity: A pilot study.

Objective: To examine whether measures of neuromuscular control and proprioceptive acuity were predictive of falls in an older community-dwelling population and to develop a multivariate prediction model.

Methods: Fifty-eight adults aged above 60 living independently in the community were recruited for a prospective falls study. On entry, they undertook a Sensory Organisation Test (SOT) and an Active Movement Extent Discrimination Assessment (AMEDA) and completed a short fall risk questionnaire.

Daily surveillance of falls is feasible and reveals a high incidence of falls among older adults.

Objective: To ensure accurate data capture for a fall study through a system of daily contact with participants.

Methods: Fifty-eight adults older than 60 years of age and living independently in the community in Canberra, Australia, were recruited for a prospective fall study. We adopted a system of daily contact with study participants for at least 12 months, either by email or by text, asking whether they had suffered a fall in the previous 24 h.

Reliability and learning effects of repeated exposure to the Bertec Balance Advantage sensory organisation test in healthy individuals.

Background: The Sensory Organisation Test (SOT) of computerised dynamic posturography (CDP) is a well-established clinical test used to measure postural control. Advances in technology have enabled new CDP systems to use immersive virtual reality, such as the Bertec® Balance Advantage®. While the Bertec provides an innovative approach to posturography, the reliability and learning effects of the Bertec in administering the SOT has not been thoroughly investigated.

Assessing Proprioception in an Older Population: Reliability of a Protocol Based on Active Movement Extent Discrimination.

Proprioceptive ability - the sense of where body parts are located in space - is one of many factors thought to affect falls risk among the elderly. Active movement extent discrimination is an approach to measuring proprioception that is administered in an ecologically valid testing environment to better reflect the exercise of proprioceptive skills in daily life. The Active Movement Extent Discrimination Apparatus (AMEDA) was developed to objectively measure this proprioceptive discrimination.