Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults
Purpose: The Fear of Falling 10-Rating Scale (FOF-10) was developed to assess fear of falling and fall risk among community-dwelling older adults. This study aims to evaluate the utility of the FOF-10 in assessing fear of falling and predicting fall events by comparing its performance with establish...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Ubiquity Press
2025-07-01
|
| Series: | Physical Activity and Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://account.paahjournal.com/index.php/up-j-pah/article/view/459 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849230046582013952 |
|---|---|
| author | Puttipong Poncumhak Arunrat Srithawong Wilairat Namwong Winut Duangsanjun |
| author_facet | Puttipong Poncumhak Arunrat Srithawong Wilairat Namwong Winut Duangsanjun |
| author_sort | Puttipong Poncumhak |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose: The Fear of Falling 10-Rating Scale (FOF-10) was developed to assess fear of falling and fall risk among community-dwelling older adults. This study aims to evaluate the utility of the FOF-10 in assessing fear of falling and predicting fall events by comparing its performance with established standard assessments for fall risk. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 107 older adults aged 60 years and above, comprising both males and females. Participants underwent assessments of baseline characteristics and a retrospective evaluation of fall history over the past six months. Subsequently, they were assessed using the FOF-10, the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I), and the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test. Results: The participants had a mean age of 74 years, with 45.79% reporting at least one fall in the preceding six months. Significant differences were observed in the FOF-10, TUG, and FES-I scores between fallers and non-fallers (p < 0.001). The FOF-10 showed significant associations with TUG, FES-I, and the number of falls (rho = 0.929, 0.830, and 0.573, respectively; p < 0.001 for all). Comparative analysis of discriminatory ability revealed that the FOF-10 demonstrated the highest performance in distinguishing fallers from non-fallers, followed by FES-I and TUG. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the FOF-10 is a practical tool for assessing fear of falling and fall events among older adults. The scale is simple, requires no complex equipment, and is time-efficient. Participants who self-reported a score of 4 or higher on the FOF-10 were indicative of a higher likelihood of experiencing falls. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d08c53687732472b8a8bb2aa993a4f38 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2515-2270 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Ubiquity Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Physical Activity and Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-d08c53687732472b8a8bb2aa993a4f382025-08-21T12:45:45ZengUbiquity PressPhysical Activity and Health2515-22702025-07-0191124–131124–13110.5334/paah.459459Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older AdultsPuttipong Poncumhak0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7788-7151Arunrat Srithawong1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7647-5657Wilairat Namwong2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6739-5487Winut Duangsanjun3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3378-0544Department of Physical Therapy, School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Phayao, PhayaoDepartment of Physical Therapy, School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Phayao, PhayaoSchool of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Khon Kaen University, Khon KaenAdult and Gerontological Nursing, School of Nursing, University of Phayao, PhayaoPurpose: The Fear of Falling 10-Rating Scale (FOF-10) was developed to assess fear of falling and fall risk among community-dwelling older adults. This study aims to evaluate the utility of the FOF-10 in assessing fear of falling and predicting fall events by comparing its performance with established standard assessments for fall risk. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 107 older adults aged 60 years and above, comprising both males and females. Participants underwent assessments of baseline characteristics and a retrospective evaluation of fall history over the past six months. Subsequently, they were assessed using the FOF-10, the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I), and the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test. Results: The participants had a mean age of 74 years, with 45.79% reporting at least one fall in the preceding six months. Significant differences were observed in the FOF-10, TUG, and FES-I scores between fallers and non-fallers (p < 0.001). The FOF-10 showed significant associations with TUG, FES-I, and the number of falls (rho = 0.929, 0.830, and 0.573, respectively; p < 0.001 for all). Comparative analysis of discriminatory ability revealed that the FOF-10 demonstrated the highest performance in distinguishing fallers from non-fallers, followed by FES-I and TUG. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the FOF-10 is a practical tool for assessing fear of falling and fall events among older adults. The scale is simple, requires no complex equipment, and is time-efficient. Participants who self-reported a score of 4 or higher on the FOF-10 were indicative of a higher likelihood of experiencing falls.https://account.paahjournal.com/index.php/up-j-pah/article/view/459fear of fallingself-assessmentfalls screeningsensitivity and specificitycommunity setting |
| spellingShingle | Puttipong Poncumhak Arunrat Srithawong Wilairat Namwong Winut Duangsanjun Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults Physical Activity and Health fear of falling self-assessment falls screening sensitivity and specificity community setting |
| title | Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults |
| title_full | Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults |
| title_fullStr | Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults |
| title_short | Ability of a New Fear of Falling Scale in Assessing Fall Risk and Its Correlation with Functional Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults |
| title_sort | ability of a new fear of falling scale in assessing fall risk and its correlation with functional balance in community dwelling older adults |
| topic | fear of falling self-assessment falls screening sensitivity and specificity community setting |
| url | https://account.paahjournal.com/index.php/up-j-pah/article/view/459 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT puttipongponcumhak abilityofanewfearoffallingscaleinassessingfallriskanditscorrelationwithfunctionalbalanceincommunitydwellingolderadults AT arunratsrithawong abilityofanewfearoffallingscaleinassessingfallriskanditscorrelationwithfunctionalbalanceincommunitydwellingolderadults AT wilairatnamwong abilityofanewfearoffallingscaleinassessingfallriskanditscorrelationwithfunctionalbalanceincommunitydwellingolderadults AT winutduangsanjun abilityofanewfearoffallingscaleinassessingfallriskanditscorrelationwithfunctionalbalanceincommunitydwellingolderadults |