Concurrent and predictive validity of "getting up from lying on the floor".

Background And Aims: Older age, higher morbidity and lower functional capacity are associated with fall injuries. Inability to get up from the floor is associated with older age, higher morbidity and lower functional capacity. The purpose of this study was to assess the concurrent and predictive validity of the ability of elderly women to get up from lying on the floor.

Methods: In a random sample of 307 women aged 75 years and over (mean 80.8 years, response rate 74.5%) living in the community, baseline registrations of ability to get up from lying on the floor, health and function were recorded. Serious fall injuries during the subsequent year served as the outcome.

Results: 240 (78.2%) managed to get up independently. The highest independent association was with items primarily related to mobility, e.g., ability to climb steps and performance on the Timed Up & Go test (TUG). However, arthrosis of the hip and difficulty with walking indoors were among the variables independently associated with the ability to get up from lying on the floor. During the follow-up year, 50.5% experienced falls, of which one in four resulted in serious injury and one in eight in a fracture. The ability to get up from lying on the floor was a significant predictor of serious fall-related injury (OR 2.1). Among those who experienced a fall, the risk of injury was markedly higher for those unable to rise (OR 3.7). The positive predictive value of being unable to rise for serious injury was 0.30, indicating that nearly one out of three of the elderly women with such problems are predicted to experience a serious fall-related injury during the following 12 months.

Conclusions: The test "get up from lying on the floor" is a marker of failing health and function in the elderly and a significant predictor of serious fall injuries.