Fatigue and recovery assessed by repetitive handgrip strength measurement as predictors of fall risk in older adults: A cross-sectional study.
Ali Kapan, Milos Ristic, Richard Felsinger and 1 others
PMID 40589163WHAT IT FOUND
Older adults who had fallen showed worse handgrip fatigue and recovery than those who had not.
In adjusted models, a higher fatigue ratio predicted more future falls, while previous falls and lower physical performance were the strongest predictors.
Key findings
01Fallers had significantly higher fatigue ratios that increased over time, while non-fallers remained stable.
02In the fully adjusted model for future falls, a 1-unit increase in the first fatigue ratio was associated with a 14% higher fall rate.
03Previous falls were the strongest predictor of future falls, with each previous fall associated with a 39% increase in the rate of future falls.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot prove that poor handgrip recovery causes falls, only that they are associated. The fallers group was significantly older and mostly female (88.4%) compared to the non-fallers group, which may influence handgrip strength results independently of fall risk. The sample was drawn from residential care homes, so the findings may not apply to older adults living independently in the community. The study did not adjust P-values for multiple testing, which increases the chance of finding a significant result by error. The recovery ratio lost significance in the fully adjusted model, suggesting its predictive value may be weaker than the fatigue ratio once other health factors are accounted for.
Declared interests
The authors received no financial support and declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume the recovery ratio is a standalone predictor of future falls. While it was significant in unadjusted analyses, it lost statistical significance in the fully adjusted model that controlled for age, sex, comorbidities, and medication count. The fatigue ratio and previous fall history were the robust predictors.