Older adults who have previously fallen due to a trip walk differently than those who have fallen due to a slip.

Studying the relationships between centre of mass (COM) and centre of pressure (COP) during walking has been shown to be useful in determining movement stability. The aim of the current study was to compare COM-COP separation measures during walking between groups of older adults with no history of falling, and a history of falling due to tripping or slipping. Any differences between individuals who have fallen due to a slip and those who have fallen due to a trip in measures of dynamic balance could potentially indicate differences in the mechanisms responsible for falls.

Differences in axial segment reorientation during standing turns predict multiple falls in older adults.

Background: The assessment of standing turning performance is proposed to predict fall risk in older adults. This study investigated differences in segmental coordination during a 360° standing turn task between older community-dwelling fallers and non-fallers.

Methods: Thirty-five older adults age mean (SD) of 71 (5.