title: Prevalence of and factors related to mild and substantial dizziness in community-dwelling older adults: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dizziness is highly prevalent among older people and associated with many health factors. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of and factors related to dizziness among community-dwelling older adults in Sweden. In contrast to previous studies, the subjects with dizziness were divided into two groups, mild and substantial dizziness, according to the frequency and intensity of dizziness.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 305 older persons between 75 and 90 years of age (mean age 81 years) were interviewed and examined. Subjects with dizziness answered the University of California Los Angeles Dizziness Questionnaire and questions about provoking movements. The groups with substantial, mild, or no dizziness were compared with regard to age, sex, diseases, drugs, blood pressure, physical activity, exercises, falls, fear of falling, quality of life, general health, mobility aids, and physical performance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this sample, 79 subjects experienced substantial and 46 mild dizziness. Subjects with substantial dizziness were less physically active, reported more fear of falling, falls, depression/anxiety, diabetes, stroke/TIA, heart disease, a higher total number of drugs and antihypertensive drugs, lower quality of life and general health, and performed worse physically.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There are many and complex associations between dizziness and factors like falls, diseases, drugs, physical performance, and activity. For most of these factors, the associations are stronger in subjects with substantial dizziness compared with subjects with mild or no dizziness; therefore, it is relevant to differ between mild and substantial dizziness symptoms in research and clinical practice in the future.
authors: Futurum, Region Jönköping County, SE-551 85, Jönköping, Sweden. ann-sofi.kammerlind@rjl.se.|Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden. ann-sofi.kammerlind@rjl.se.
authors: Ann-Sofi C
authors: AS
authors: Kammerlind
authors: Institute of Gerontology, School of Health and Welfare, Jönköping University, Jönköping, Sweden.
authors: Marie
authors: M
authors: Ernsth Bravell
authors: Department of Natural Science and Biomedicine, School of Health and Welfare, Jönköping University, Jönköping, Sweden.|Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors: Eleonor I
authors: EI
authors: Fransson
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology; D004244:Dizziness / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057187:Independent Living / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Blood pressure; Diseases; Dizziness; Drugs; Falling; Fear of falling; Older persons; Physical activity; Physical performance; Quality of life