Relationships between Mild/Severe Knee Joint Pain and Fall Risk Assessment Items in Elderly Females

Aims: This study aimed to examine differences in corresponding rates of fall risk survey items among 3 groups of elderly females categorized on the basis of knee pain.

Methodology: Total of 392 subjects completed the fall risk survey, which comprised 50 items representing 5 risk factors: “symptoms of falling,” “disease and physical symptoms,” “environment,” “behavior and character” and “physical function.”

Results: The corresponding rates for items related to physical function factor tended to be significantly higher in the severe knee pain group than in the no and mild knee pain groups. However, the corresponding rates for items related to frequency of motion in the behavioral and character factors category were significantly higher in the no and mild knee pain groups than in the severe knee pain group. The corresponding rates of items related to environmental factors and behavioral and character factors tended to be higher in the severe knee pain group.

Conclusion: The severe knee pain group exhibited higher corresponding rates in several fall risk items compared with the other 2 groups. The fall risk items related to frequency of motion in the behavioral and character factors category showed a tendency to be low in the groups with no or mild pain.