IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v16y2019i18p3230-d263851.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Association between Recent Falls and Changes in Outdoor Environments near Community-Dwelling Older Adults’ Homes over Time: Findings from the NHATS Study

Author

Listed:
  • Sungmin Lee

    (Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06268, USA)

  • Chanam Lee

    (Department of Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning, College of Architecture, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA)

  • Marcia G. Ory

    (Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, School of Public Health, Texas A&M Health Science Center, College Station, TX 77843, USA)

Abstract

Neighborhood environments have been increasingly associated with incidents of falling and the fear of falling. However, little is known about the causal impact of neighborhood environments on falling. This study identifies whether changes in outdoor environmental attributes over a one-year period are associated with the occurrence of recent falls among community-dwelling older adults aged 65 and older in the United States. Data were obtained from 4802 adults aged 65 years or older from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS). Logistic regression analyses were performed to identify neighborhood risk factors linked to the odds of experiencing recent falls at the one-year follow-up. Almost one in ten subjects (9.7% of 4802 subjects) who had not fallen before reported experiencing recent falls after one year. After adjusting for sociodemographic, health, and walking-related behavioral covariates, these subjects were more likely to reside in areas with higher environmental barriers on sidewalks/streets and uneven walking surfaces or broken steps, compared to non-fallers. Our findings suggest that safe and well-maintained outdoor environments may help prevent falls among community-dwelling older adults who engage in outdoor activities. Clinical and environmental interventions for promoting both safe walking and safe environments are warranted.

Suggested Citation

  • Sungmin Lee & Chanam Lee & Marcia G. Ory, 2019. "Association between Recent Falls and Changes in Outdoor Environments near Community-Dwelling Older Adults’ Homes over Time: Findings from the NHATS Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-12, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:16:y:2019:i:18:p:3230-:d:263851
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/18/3230/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/18/3230/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sungmin Lee & Chanam Lee & Susan Rodiek, 2017. "Neighborhood Factors and Fall-Related Injuries among Older Adults Seen by Emergency Medical Service Providers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-13, February.
    2. Frieden, T.R., 2010. "A framework for public health action: The health impact pyramid," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 100(4), pages 590-595.
    3. Li, W. & Keegan, T.H.M. & Sternfeld, B. & Sidney, S. & Quesenberry Jr., C.P. & Kelsey, J.L., 2006. "Outdoor falls among middle-aged and older adults: A neglected public health problem," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 96(7), pages 1192-1200.
    4. Emily Joy Nicklett & Matthew C. Lohman & Matthew Lee Smith, 2017. "Neighborhood Environment and Falls among Community-Dwelling Older Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-15, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Angela Curl & Helen Fitt & Melanie Tomintz, 2020. "Experiences of the Built Environment, Falls and Fear of Falling Outdoors among Older Adults: An Exploratory Study and Future Directions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-15, February.
    2. Giulia Ogliari & Jesper Ryg & Karen Andersen-Ranberg & Lasse Lybecker Scheel-Hincke & Tahir Masud, 2022. "Perceived neighbourhood environment and falls among community-dwelling adults: cross-sectional and prospective findings from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)," European Journal of Ageing, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 1121-1134, December.
    3. Lee, Sungmin & Ye, Xinyue & Nam, Ji Won & Zhang, Kai, 2022. "The association between tree canopy cover over streets and elderly pedestrian falls: A health disparity study in urban areas," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 306(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tong-Yue Zhou & Xiao-Mei Yuan & Xiao-Jun Ma, 2020. "Canan Outdoor Multisurface Terrain Enhance the Effects of Fall Prevention Exercise in Older Adults? A Randomized Controlled Trial," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-12, September.
    2. Giulia Ogliari & Jesper Ryg & Karen Andersen-Ranberg & Lasse Lybecker Scheel-Hincke & Tahir Masud, 2022. "Perceived neighbourhood environment and falls among community-dwelling adults: cross-sectional and prospective findings from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)," European Journal of Ageing, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 1121-1134, December.
    3. Marcia G. Ory & Matthew Lee Smith, 2017. "What If Healthy Aging Is the ‘New Normal’?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-5, November.
    4. Kun Wang & Meijun Chen & Xiaoyue Zhang & Lanchao Zhang & Chun Chang & Yu Tian & Xiaofeng Wang & Zhijing Li & Ying Ji, 2022. "The Incidence of Falls and Related Factors among Chinese Elderly Community Residents in Six Provinces," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-15, November.
    5. Mendez Lopez, Ana & Loopstra, Rachel & McKee, Martin & Stuckler, David, 2017. "Is trade liberalisation a vector for the spread of sugar-sweetened beverages? A cross-national longitudinal analysis of 44 low- and middle-income countries," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 21-27.
    6. Chen Zhang & Xiaoming Li & Yu Liu & Shan Qiao & Liying Zhang & Yuejiao Zhou & Zhenzhu Tang & Zhiyong Shen & Yi Chen, 2016. "Stigma against People Living with HIV/AIDS in China: Does the Route of Infection Matter?," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(3), pages 1-15, March.
    7. Bolte, Gabriele, 2018. "Epidemiologische Methoden und Erkenntnisse als eine Grundlage für Stadtplanung und gesundheitsfördernde Stadtentwicklung," Forschungsberichte der ARL: Aufsätze, in: Baumgart, Sabine & Köckler, Heike & Ritzinger, Anne & Rüdiger, Andrea (ed.), Planung für gesundheitsfördernde Städte, volume 8, pages 118-134, ARL – Akademie für Raumentwicklung in der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft.
    8. Nova Corcoran, 2017. "Promoting health in lesbian and bisexual women: it is not just about behaviour change," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(21-22), pages 3742-3750, November.
    9. Christopher W. Ryan, 2023. "Decreased Respiratory-Related Absenteeism among Preschool Students after Installation of Upper Room Germicidal Ultraviolet Light: Analysis of Newly Discovered Historical Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-11, January.
    10. Mayra L Estrella & Natalya I Rosenberg & Ramon A Durazo-Arvizu & Hector M Gonzalez & Matthew S Loop & Richard H Singer & James P Lash & Sheila F Castañeda & Krista M Perreira & Kamal Eldeirawi & Marth, 2018. "The association of employment status with ideal cardiovascular health factors and behaviors among Hispanic/Latino adults: Findings from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL)," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(11), pages 1-22, November.
    11. Sebastian del Busto & Inés Galindo & Juan Jesús Hernandez & Francisco Camarelles & Esther Nieto & Águeda Caballero & María Sandín Vázquez, 2019. "Creating a Collaborative Platform for the Development of Community Interventions to Prevent Non-Communicable Diseases," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-14, February.
    12. Katie Adamek & Sarah Bardin & So O'Neil & Dara Lee Luca, "undated". "Accelerating Teen Pregnancy Prevention in Phillips County, Arkansas and Coahoma County, Mississippi," Mathematica Policy Research Reports 7fda86cbb1bf4303a84f466e8, Mathematica Policy Research.
    13. Ana Moradell & Irene Rodríguez-Gómez & Ángel Iván Fernández-García & David Navarrete-Villanueva & Jorge Marín-Puyalto & Jorge Pérez-Gómez & José Gerardo Villa-Vicente & Marcela González-Gross & Ignaci, 2021. "Associations between Daily Movement Distribution, Bone Structure, Falls, and Fractures in Older Adults: A Compositional Data Analysis Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-15, April.
    14. Grdenić, Goran & Delimar, Marko & Robić, Slavica, 2020. "Framing the context of energy poverty in Croatia: A case-study from Zagreb," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    15. Clarke, Philippa J. & Ailshire, Jennifer A. & Nieuwenhuijsen, Els R. & de Kleijn - de Vrankrijker, Marijke W., 2011. "Participation among adults with disability: The role of the urban environment," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 72(10), pages 1674-1684, May.
    16. Rita Ferreira Gomes & Beatriz Casais, 2018. "Feelings generated by threat appeals in social marketing: text and emoji analysis of user reactions to anorexia nervosa campaigns in social media," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 15(4), pages 591-607, December.
    17. Seonhye Lee & Eunmi Oh & Gwi-Ryung Son Hong, 2018. "Comparison of Factors Associated with Fear of Falling between Older Adults with and without a Fall History," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-12, May.
    18. Sean Lucan & Nandita Mitra, 2012. "Perceptions of the food environment are associated with fast-food (not fruit-and-vegetable) consumption: findings from multi-level models," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 57(3), pages 599-608, June.
    19. Toby C. T. Mak & Catherine M. Capio & Thomson W. L. Wong, 2022. "Effects of Single-Task, Dual-Task and Analogy Training during Gait Rehabilitation of Older Adults at Risk of Falling: A Randomized Controlled Trial," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-12, December.
    20. Margherita Silan & Pietro Belloni & Giovanna Boccuzzo, 2023. "Identification of neighborhood clusters on data balanced by a poset-based approach," Statistical Methods & Applications, Springer;Società Italiana di Statistica, vol. 32(4), pages 1295-1316, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:16:y:2019:i:18:p:3230-:d:263851. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.