TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2008//
TI  - The influence of obesity on falls and quality of life
JO  - Dynamic medicine
A1  - Fjeldstad, Cecilie
A1  - Fjeldstad, Anette S.
A1  - Acree, Luke S.
A1  - Nickel, Kevin J.
A1  - Gardner, A. W.
SP  - 4
EP  - 4
VL  - 7
IS  - 1
N2  - ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE: To determine (1) whether obese older adults had higher prevalence of falls and ambulatory stumbling, impaired balance and lower health-related quality of life (HRQL) than their normal weight counterparts, and (2) whether the falls and balance measures were associated with HRQL in obese adults. METHODS: Subjects who had a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 kg/mA;2 were classified into an obese group (n = 128) while those with BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 kg/mA;2 were included into a normal weight group (n = 88). Functional tests were performed to assess balance, and questionnaires were administered to assess history of falls, ambulatory stumbling, and HRQL. RESULTS: The obese group reported a higher prevalence of falls (27% vs. 15%), and ambulatory stumbling (32% vs. 14%) than the normal weight group. Furthermore, the obese group had lower HRQL, (p [less than or equal to] 0.05) for physical function (63 +/- 27 vs. 75 +/- 26; mean +/- SD), role-physical (59 +/- 40 vs. 74 +/- 37), vitality (58 +/- 23 vs. 66 +/- 20), bodily pain (62 +/- 25 vs. 74 +/- 21) and general health (64 +/- 19 vs. 70 +/- 18). In the obese group, a history of falls was related (p [less than or equal to] 0.05) to lower scores in 4 domains of HRQL, and ambulatory stumbling was related (p [less than or equal to] 0.01) to 7 domains. CONCLUSION: In middle-aged and older adults, obesity was associated with a higher prevalence of falls and stumbling during ambulation, as well as lower values in multiple domains of HRQL. Furthermore, a history of falls and ambulatory stumbling were related to lower measures of HRQL in obese adults.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1476-5918
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1476-5918-7-4
ID  - ref1
ER  -