GENDER DIFFERENCES IN ASSOCIATION OF PAIN AND PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE WITH FEAR OF FALLING

• Published in: Innovation in aging 2017-07, Vol.1 (suppl_1), p.871-871
• Main Authors: Thapa, S., Leveille, S.G., Bean, J.F., McLean, R., You, T.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abstracts
• ISSN: 2399-5300; 2399-5300
• DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igx004.3130

Fear of falling (FOF) can contribute to avoidance of physical activity and subsequent adverse health effects, reducing quality of life in older adults. An understanding of potential gender differences in factors such as pain and physical performance as contributors to FOF may lead to better fall prevention in women and men. We studied 765 adults aged 70 and older living in Boston area communities, participants in the population-based MOBILIZE Boston study. Pain severity was assessed using the Brief Pain Inventory pain severity subscale and musculoskeletal pain was classified as multisite, single site, or no pain. Fear of falling was measured using the Falls Efficacy Scale (FES). Physical performance was assessed using the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). We used multivariable linear regression to examine the relation between pain and SPPB with FES score, separately in women and men. Slight differences between women and men in FES scores were not statistically significant (women mean= 95.19 ± 9.58; men mean= 96.33 ± 8.60, p-value=0.10). In separate multivariable models (adjusted for age, education, low vision, frailty, sppb, arthritis, and depression), pain severity and multisite pain were associated with lower FES scores in women (p-values=0.02 and 0.03, respectively), but not in men (p-values=0.21 and 0.57, respectively). In both women and men, low SPPB scores were strongly associated with FOF (p-value