Preventing life-threatening falls among the elderly requires more investigation into the dynamics of posture and vision in that age group, researchers say.
Writing in the Journal of Gerontology and the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, scientists from Australia and the University of Pennsylvania say certain balance problems among older adults haven't been adequately probed.
The study says that risks of falling -- with often dangerous results -- is often linked to an inability to adjust to posture changes and sight problems.
Australian researcher Rebecca Ivers says that relatively simple, cost-effective measures such as updating glasses and having cataract surgery may have a significant impact on falls-prevention in older people. Her team's study found that vision difficulties had a strong association with multiple falling incidents.
Penn State researchers say postural stability tends to decline with age. Investigators looked at a group of men and women ranging in age from 60 to 96 to measure their ability to keep their balance by adjusting foot pressure. Researchers say the boundaries of such stability tend to disintegrate if the person being tested had their arms raised above their shoulders, or their eyes closed.
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