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Falls in Cognitively Impaired Older Adults: Implications for Risk Assessment And Prevention
Montero-Odasso M, Speechley M.. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2018-01-10
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objectives To provide an overview of the role of cognition in falls, with potential implications for managing and preventing falls in older adults. Design Review. Setting Observational and interventional studies addressing the role of cognition on falls. Participants Community-dwelling older adults (65 years and older). Measurements The relationship between gait and cognition in aging and neurodegeneration was reviewed in the medical literature to highlight the role of brain motor control deficits in fall risk. The benefits of dual-task gait assessments as a marker of fall risk were reviewed. Therapeutic approaches for reducing falls by improving certain aspects of cognition were appraised. Results Low performance in attention and executive function are associated with gait slowing, instability, and future falls. Drug-enhancement of cognition may reduce falls in Parkinson's disease, and cognitive training, dual-task training, and virtual reality modalities are promising to improve mobility in sedentary older adults and in those with cognitive impairment and dementia. Conclusion Falls remain common in older people, with higher prevalence and morbidity in those who are cognitively impaired. Disentangling the mechanism and contribution of cognitive deficits in fall risk may open new treatment approaches. Mounting evidence supports that cognitive therapies help reduce falls.
Key findings
- Results Low performance in attention and executive function are associated with gait slowing, instability, and future falls.
Why it matters
This review reports that low performance in attention and executive function is linked to gait problems and future falls, and that cognitive therapies may help reduce falls. It does not report any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 49/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of the American Geriatrics Society) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Journal of the American Geriatrics Society: journal h-index 344 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 280 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 28.0 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 47.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 2 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 89 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Mark R. Speechley: h-index 72 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Western University: institution h-index 899 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 29318592) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 49 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Montero-Odasso, M., & Speechley, M. (2018). Falls in Cognitively Impaired Older Adults: Implications for Risk Assessment And Prevention. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.15219
Vancouver
Montero-Odasso M, Speechley M. Falls in Cognitively Impaired Older Adults: Implications for Risk Assessment And Prevention. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 2018. doi:10.1111/jgs.15219. PMID: 29318592.
BibTeX
@article{monteroodasso2018-29318592,
author = {Montero-Odasso, M. and Speechley, M.},
title = {{Falls in Cognitively Impaired Older Adults: Implications for Risk Assessment And Prevention}},
journal = {Journal of the American Geriatrics Society},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1111/jgs.15219},
pmid = {29318592},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.15219}
}
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