Pain increases risk of falling in elderly

BOSTON, Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Two out of three older adults experience pain that may contribute to an increased risk of falls in those age 70 and older, U.S. researchers said.

Lead author Suzanne Leveille -- who conducted the research while at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and is currently at the University of Massachusetts Boston -- used data gathered as part of Maintenance of Balance, Independent Living, Intellect and Zest in the Elderly in Boston. The MOBILIZE Boston study at the Institute for Aging Research at Hebrew SeniorLife was intended to gain a better understanding of what causes falls in older adults.

From September 2005 to January 2008, 749 adults age 70 and older were interviewed about their health and pain. They also underwent a physical assessment and were tracked for 18 months.

"At the beginning of the study, 40 percent of the participants reported experiencing chronic pain in more than one joint area and 24 percent reported chronic pain in a single joint," Leveille said. "During the 18-month study period, the 749 participants reported a total of 1,029 falls, with more than half the participants falling at least once during this period."

The study, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, revealed that compared with study participants who reported no pain, the participants who experienced chronic pain in two or more joints had a 50 percent greater risk of falling.