Education on Falls

Parkinson’s Disease is often associated with gait dysfunction and postural instabilities. This increases the risk of falls and subsequent consequences such as hospitalizations, fractures, head injuries, and burden on healthcare resources. 1

Other less obvious consequences are often observed post fall such as reduced activity levels, poor quality of life, fear of falling, and caregiver stress.4 This then starts a dysfunctional cycle and leads to even greater risk of falling. 6

PD has been linked to higher risk of lower bone mineral density and osteoporosis.Those with PD are more than twice as likely to have osteoporosis compared with their general population of unaffected individuals of the same age. 2 This also leads to higher rates of bone fractures post falls, with hip fractures being the most common. 3

Research has shown that a fear of falling has a profound and detrimental effect on balance performance in the geriatric population, leading to an increased risk of falls. 9

Cited Resources:
LeWitt, P. A., Kymes, S., & Hauser, R. A. (2020). Parkinson disease and orthostatic hypotension in the elderly: recognition and management of risk factors for falls. Aging and disease, 11(3), 679.
Henderson, E. J., Lyell, V., Bhimjiyani, A., Amin, J., Kobylecki, C., & Gregson, C. L. (2019). Management of fracture risk in Parkinson's: a revised algorithm and focused review of treatments. Parkinsonism & Related Disorders, 64, 181-187.
Schini, M., Vilaca, T., Poku, E., Harnan, S., Sutton, A., Allen, I. E., ... & Eastell, R. (2020). The risk of hip and non-vertebral fractures in patients with Parkinson's disease and parkinsonism: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Bone, 132, 115173.
Allen, N. E., Schwarzel, A. K., & Canning, C. G. (2013). Recurrent falls in Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review. Parkinson’s disease, 2013.
Fasano, A., Canning, C. G., Hausdorff, J. M., Lord, S., & Rochester, L. (2017). Falls in Parkinson's disease: a complex and evolving picture. Movement disorders, 32(11), 1524-1536.
Araújo, H. A., Smaili, S. M., Morris, R., Graham, L., Das, J., McDonald, C., ... & Vitório, R. (2023). Combination of Clinical and Gait Measures to Classify Fallers and Non-Fallers in Parkinson’s Disease. Sensors, 23(10), 4651.
Pelicioni, P. H., Menant, J. C., Latt, M. D., & Lord, S. R. (2019). Falls in Parkinson’s disease subtypes: risk factors, locations and circumstances. International journal of environmental research and public health, 16(12), 2216.
Adam, C. E., Fitzpatrick, A. L., Leary, C. S., Hajat, A., Ilango, S. D., Park, C., ... & Semmens, E. O. (2023). Change in gait speed and fall risk among community-dwelling older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment: a retrospective cohort analysis. BMCgeriatrics, 23(1), 1-11. Young, W. R., & Williams, A. M. (2015). How fear of falling can increase fall-risk in older adults: applying psychological theory to practical observations. Gait & posture, 41(1), 7-12.