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New horizons in falls prevention
Lord SR, Close JCT.. Age and ageing, 2018-07-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Falls pose a major threat to the well-being and quality of life of older people. Falls can result in fractures and other injuries, disability and fear and can trigger a decline in physical function and loss of autonomy. This article synthesises recent published findings on fall risk and mobility assessments and fall prevention interventions and considers how this field of research may evolve in the future. Fall risk topics include the utility of remote monitoring using wearable sensors and recent work investigating brain activation and gait adaptability. New approaches for exercise for fall prevention including dual-task training, cognitive-motor training with exergames and reactive step training are discussed. Additional fall prevention strategies considered include the prevention of falls in older people with dementia and Parkinson's disease, drugs for fall prevention and safe flooring for preventing fall-related injuries. The review discusses how these new initiatives and technologies have potential for effective fall prevention and improved quality of life. It concludes by emphasising the need for a continued focus on translation of evidence into practice including robust effectiveness evaluations of so that resources can be appropriately targeted into the future.
Key findings
- Falls can result in fractures and other injuries, disability and fear and can trigger a decline in physical function and loss of autonomy.
- It concludes by emphasising the need for a continued focus on translation of evidence into practice including robust effectiveness evaluations of so that resources can be appropriately targeted into the future.
Why it matters
This review discusses fall risk assessment and prevention strategies for older people, including those with dementia and Parkinson's disease. It does not report a treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease itself.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 42/100
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 (Age and ageing) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Age and Ageing: journal h-index 231 (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 | 4 / 7 | Cited 83 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.3 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 14.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 32 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Jacqueline Close: h-index 68 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | UNSW Sydney: institution h-index 1,101 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 29697780) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 42 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1093/ageing/afy059
- PubMed: 29697780
- Original source →
- Free full text: UNSWorks (University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia) →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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
Lord, SR., & Close, J. C. T. (2018). New horizons in falls prevention. Age and ageing. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afy059
Vancouver
Lord SR, Close JCT. New horizons in falls prevention. Age and ageing. 2018. doi:10.1093/ageing/afy059. PMID: 29697780.
BibTeX
@article{lord2018-29697780,
author = {Lord, SR. and Close, J. C. T.},
title = {{New horizons in falls prevention}},
journal = {Age and ageing},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1093/ageing/afy059},
pmid = {29697780},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afy059}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.