More than 30% of adults age 65 and older fall each year and approximately 40,000 in 2021 died in the USA due to falling related injuries. If you or a loved one is at risk of falling it's import to assess and reduce your risk today to help keep your independence, improve quality of life, and potentially increase your lifespan. Today we are gonna go over 3 different assessments to determine if you are at risk of falling, and review several exercises to help improve your balance.
Fall Risk Assessment #1: Four stage balance test
This test looks at static balance or balance while standing in one place. Each stage increases the level of difficulty. Based on the level of difficulty and your ability to complete these tasks can help to determine if you are at increase risk of falling.
Stage 1: Stand on a firm surface with your feet touching one another
Stage 2: Stagger one foot forward so the middle of your foot is lined up with the opposite heel
Stage 3: Place one foot in front of the other
Stage 4: Stand on one leg
Attempt to hold each of these positions for 10 seconds. Be sure to be safe and have fun while performing some of these trials. A great location to do this is in-front of your kitchen sink or in a corner so you have something to hang onto inorder to be safe.
Fall Risk Assessment #2: Time up and go test
This test looks at walking pace or speed, as their is a strong corelation to the speed you are able to walk and your risk of falling. Consider when you ride a bike at slower speeds you have to fidget a little more to help keep your body weight over the bike and keep your balance.
Time your ability to stand up from a chair, walk 10 feet, turn around, walk back to the chair, and sit back down.
The goal is to try to complete this task in 10 to 12 seconds. Scores above 12 seconds coorelate to an increased risk of falling. Remember to complete the tasks safely, it may be appropriately to have a family memeber be close by while peforming test. SAFETY is number one.
Fall Risk Assessment #3: Functional Gait Assessment
Okay this one is a little more tricky. It looks at dynamic balance or balance with movement. The assessment goes over a variety of scenarios that will test your balance. This is a scored assesment if an individual shows they are unable to or has a severely difficult time perform the activitie they get a score of 0, moderate difficulty scores at a 1, mild difficulty scores a 2, and no difficulty the individual gets a 3 for that specific task. Tasks described below:
Walking on a level surface
Changing speed from fast to slow
Walking with horizontal head turns
Walking with vertical head turns
Pivoting and turning
Walking over obstacles
Walking with one foot in front of the other
Walking with your eyes closed
Walking backwards
Going up/down steps
For normal aging adults anything lower than a 22/30 is considered to have a greater risk of falling.
Balance BEWARE!
To improve your balance you need to first consider safety, as described above find a location in your home such by a kitchen sink or near a corner. . Many of the tests and positions performed above can be use as exercises to help target your balance and decrease your risk of falling. For example try to hold each of the 4 stage balance test positions for 30 seconds 3 times a day. This will help to improve static balance. If the exercises are too easy try them with your eyes closed for an added challenge. Below is a video that goes into detail on how to avoid falls and whats can cause people to have a fall.
As described in the video lower body strength is another component that needs to be address when considering your risk of falling. Try some of the exercises in the video or follow for more suggestions.
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Remember this information is for educational purposes only and should not be used for evaluation or treatment of yourself. Consult your Primary Care Physician (PCP) or other medical professionals for more information.
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