title: Falls in the elderly: the development of a risk questionnaire and posturographic findings.
abstract: In elderly people, owing to a perturbation at several levels, including the motor, sensory and cognitive levels, a condition of dizziness and unsteadiness complicated by frequent falls often appears. In this article, we review the most recent information about clinical and instrumental tools available for preventing mobility-related accidents and report the results of a comparative study of postural control, carried out through tetraataxiometry (by Tetrax, Tel Aviv, Israel), in two samples of elderly women belonging to two different populations: 24 Italian women (11 reporting falls and 13 without falls) having a mean age of 73.1 years, and 37 Israeli women (12 with falls and 25 without falls) having a mean age of 72.5 years. The posturographic findings show that the falling subjects, to maintain postural control, are highly dependent on somatosensory inputs and have a weaker "systeme postural fin" (fine postural system), according to Gagey. They also show that an elderly subpopulation exists that, for unknown reasons, is immune to destabilization and falls.
authors.affiliation: Scientific Institute, S. Maria Nascente, Don C. Gnocchi Foundation, Milan, Italy. Dalpini@dongnocchi.it
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Alpini
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kohen-Ratz
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Burstin
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tesio
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pugnetti
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mendozzi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sambataro
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cesarani
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Giuliano
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D004856:Postural Balance; D011187:Posture; D018570:Risk Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires