Lower-limb hypopallesthesia: A risk factor for falls in cognitively intact non-diabetic older adults

Abstract

Peripheral neuropathies (PN) in older adults often involve altered vibrational perception, i.e. hypopallesthesia. The main objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine whether age-related lower-limb hypopallesthesia is associated with a history of falls in cognitively intact non-diabetic older adults. The study population comprised 157 people (mean, 71.5 ± 3.8years, 45.3 % female, 19.7 % with a history of falls). Fallers more often exhibited hypopallesthesia than non-fallers (13.3 % versus 1.6 %, P = 0.04). Multiple logistic regression showed that hypopallesthesia (odds ratio (OR) = 19.5 [95 % confidence interval (CI): 2.7-143.7], P = 0.004) was associated with the history of falls in this sample of cognitively intact non-diabetic older adults.

Keywords: Fall history; Hypopallesthesia; Older adults; Peripheral neuropathies.