Performance in a Balance Test and Prediction of All-Cause Mortality in Community-Dwelling Elderly Ambulatory Individuals: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

This systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the association between an inability to perform a static balance test and mortality in community-dwelling older ambulatory individuals. PubMed, Embase, and Scopus were searched for relevant cohort studies. Hazard ratios (HR) were pooled (random-effect model). Meta-regression was performed with independent demographic variables (PROSPERO ID: CRD42022381137). A total of 11,713 articles were screened and 15 were included. An inability to perform a static balance test was significantly associated with a higher risk of mortality irrespective of whether confounding variables were considered [HR, 1.14 (95% CI: 1.07-1.21); < .001; i, 87.96% ( < .01)] or not [HR, 1.11 (95% CI: 1.03-1.20); = .01; i, 95.28% ( < .01)] (both moderate GRADE evidence). Also, this association was correlated with progressive age. An inability to successfully complete a static balance test was significantly associated with a higher risk of mortality among community-dwelling older ambulatory individuals.