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Performance-based assessment of falls risk in older veterans with executive dysfunction

This study assesses if the Timed Up and Go test can detect potential fallers with cognitive deficits among older veterans. Results show a strong association between TUG-Cognition scores and executive dysfunction, offering promise in identifying at-risk individuals. Future research should explore the predictive validity of these measures.

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Performance-based assessment of falls risk in older veterans with executive dysfunction

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  1. Performance-based assessment of falls risk in older veterans with executive dysfunction Barbara L. Fischer, PsyD; William T. Hoyt, PhD; Lawrence Maucieri, PhD; Amy J. Kind, MD, PhD; Gail Gunter-Hunt, MSW; Teresa Chervenka Swader, MSW; Ronald E. Gangnon, PhD; Carey E. Gleason, PhD

  2. Aim • Examine whether Timed Up and Go (TUG) test detects potential fallers whose risk is associated with cognitive deficits. • Relevance • Falling is serious hazard for older veterans. • American Geriatrics Society (AGS) guidelines for screening for falls risk may be less successful with specific subgroups of patients.

  3. Method • Participants included 120 mostly male patients referred to Memory Assessment Clinic because of cognitive impairment. • Determined whether: • TUG tasks and AGS criteria were differentially associated with executive dysfunction. • TUG tasks identified potential fallers outside of those recognized by AGS criteria. • These tasks distinguished groups of fallers.

  4. Results • TUG-Cognition scores: • Were strongly associated with executive dysfunction. • Differed systematically between fallers grouped by number of falls.

  5. Results • TUG-Cognition scores were strongly associated with executive function • TUG-Cognition score discriminated between never/single and multiple fallers (avg. 3.72 sec.) • Patients uniquely identified by TUG-Cognition were older and less medically frail.

  6. Conclusion • Findings suggest that TUG-Cognition shows promise in identifying fallers whose risk is related to or compounded by cognitive impairment. • Future research should study predictive validity of these measures by following patients prospectively.

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