title: Impaired balance and higher prevalence of falls in subjects with intermittent claudication.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of this study was to determine whether peripheral arterial disease (PAD) subjects have impaired balance and a higher prevalence of falls than non-PAD controls and to determine whether balance and falls are related to the severity of PAD and functional status.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 367 PAD subjects (aged 68 +/- 1 years; mean +/- SEM) and 458 non-PAD controls (aged 67 +/- 1 years) were recruited. Unipedal stance time, history of ambulatory stumbling and unsteadiness, and history of falling were recorded. Additionally, subjects were characterized on age, ankle/brachial index (ABI), anthropometry, measured and self-reported ambulatory function, and monitored daily physical activity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Unipedal stance time was 28% shorter ( p <.001) in the PAD subjects than in the non-PAD controls (15.9 +/- 0.9 vs 22.1 +/- 1.0). History of ambulatory stumbling and unsteadiness was 86% more prevalent ( p <.001) in the PAD group (150/367 = 41%) than in the controls (101/458 = 22%), and history of falling was 73% more prevalent ( p <.001) in the PAD subjects (95/367 = 26%) than in the controls (69/458 = 15%). Within the PAD group, 6-minute walk distance, self-reported ambulatory function, and daily physical activity were significantly related to the balance and falling measures ( p <.05), whereas ABI was unrelated ( p >.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Compared with the controls, PAD subjects with intermittent claudication had impaired balance and a greater likelihood of falling, both of which were associated with ambulatory function and daily physical activity.
authors.affiliation: Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center, Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA. gardner@grecc.umaryland.edu
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Gardner
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Montgomery
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007383:Intermittent Claudication / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D004856:Postural Balance