Posters for 3rd World Falls Congress 2026

Introduction: World Falls Guidelines ​(1)​ recommend that a comprehensive, multifactorial falls risk assessment be carried out for every care home resident. However, due to heterogeneity in the care home sector, evidence-based multifactorial tools do not necessarily become integrated into practice and require a multi-faceted and tailored approach built on understanding the barriers and enablers for implementation ​(2)​ To better understand the necessary skills, levers and pathways that support the adoption and spread of evidence-based practice, a scoping review was undertaken to identify

Introduction Falls are a major concern in the community due to their association with increased mortality. Anticholinergic medications are commonly prescribed in multimorbidity and are strongly associated with an increased risk of falls. This project aimed to determine whether anticholinergic burden (ACB) correlated with frequency or severity of falls and to assess whether the ACB calculator is a useful tool in assessing those at greatest risk of falls. Methods Electronic records were retrospectively reviewed for all residents of a local care centre to the GP practice Ellesmere medical centre

Introduction: Participation in Senior University programs is often viewed as a proxy for active and healthy ageing. However, the prevalence of geriatric syndromes in this specific population—particularly fall risk associated with executive decline and polypharmacy burden—remains under-characterized. This study aimed to phenotype the fall risk profile by analyzing the interplay between physical, cognitive, and extrinsic determinants in a cohort of community-dwelling older adults in Southern Portugal. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted with community-dwelling individuals

Introduction: Developing serious games for geriatric rehabilitation requires bridging the gap between clinical guidelines and user engagement. This study presents a novel methodological protocol used in the co-development of an analog serious game for fall prevention in older adults. The objective was to validate a comprehensive co-design framework that integrates multidisciplinary stakeholder insights with end-user creativity through a sequential, participatory methodology, ensuring both clinical fidelity and high playability. Methods: A multi-phase qualitative exploratory study was conducted

Background: Falls are a leading cause of disability and dependency among older adults, yet their relationship with the multidimensional construct of intrinsic capacity (IC) remains underexplored. Understanding how declines in IC domains such as locomotion, cognition, vitality, and sensory function relate to falls can inform early preventive strategies aligned with the WHO Decade of Healthy Ageing framework. Methods: We analysed data from 692 robust or pre-frail community-dwelling adults aged ≥60 years screened under the SPICE (Screen, Prevent frailty, Inspire, Connect, Exercise / Eat) Program

Introduction: Hospital admissions from care homes are frequent, particularly among frail older adults. While many are clinically necessary, others might be avoided with timely community interventions and advanced care planning. Unplanned admissions can distress residents, disrupt continuity of care, and increase demand on acute services. The Frailty Unit at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital serves as the primary point of admission for this population. Understanding admission patterns and opportunities for community management is crucial to improving patient outcomes and system efficiency. Methods

Introduction Frequent falling is a major health concern for people post-stroke, with poor reactive stepping contributing to increased fall risk. Perturbation-based training (PBT) effectively improves reactive stepping, but its clinical implementation is constrained by availability and costs. This study (NL-OMON56779) investigated whether reactive step quality may also be enhanced by single-session PBT followed by five weeks of home-based training using a custom-designed exergame based on action observation with motor simulation of reactive stepping. Methods People with chronic stroke (>six

Introduction: Older adults with a history of recurrent falls present distinct characteristics that may influence future fall events. Identifying which factors are associated with subsequent falls is essential for targeted prevention. Objective: To describe fall outcomes over 12 months among older adults with a history of recurrent falls and to identify factors associated with the occurrence of falls during this period. Methods: A prospective study was conducted with 49 community-dwelling older adults (≥60 years) with a history of at least two falls in the previous year. Data included clinical

Introduction: Falls are frequent events among older adults, especially those at high risk, and can lead to injuries and functional impact. Cognitive impairment is recognized as a potential aggravating factor, but its role in the characteristics of falls is not yet fully understood. The purpose of this study was to describe and compare the profile of falls among older adults at high risk of falls, with and without cognitive impairment. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with 118 older adults at high risk of falls from the community, divided into a group with cognitive impairment (CIG, n

Background: Tele-exercise —online exercise programs that can be done from home— increases opportunities for year-round physical activity and may improve fall prevention outcomes. Moreover, tele-exercise supports can help overcome common barriers to in-person exercise. However, uptake is inconsistent due to factors such as technology acceptance, program characteristics, among others, that are still not well understood. Objectives: To identify factors influencing participation in tele-exercise within a community-based fall prevention program (Zoomers in Balance), guided by the Senior Technology

Introduction Approximately 700,000 (10%) of UK emergency ambulance calls are to older adults who have fallen each year. Therefore this study aimed to answer: Who are the population of older adults who fall and call an emergency ambulance, what is their presentation and what ambulance response do they receive? Methods 12-months of anonymous retrospective electronic ambulance records from two regional English ambulance services were collected. Population: Patients aged 65 and older who called an emergency ambulance, were categorised as a fall during call triage, and received an ambulance. The

Introduction Around 10% of UK emergency ambulance calls (approximately 700,000) are to older adults who have fallen. Previous studies have explored the complex decision-making of ambulance staff, finding confidence to be a theme. This interview study aimed to explore understand the factors and experiences that impact the decision-making, confidence and actions of patient facing emergency ambulance staff when attending older adults who have fallen. Methods Semi-structured interviews with frontline emergency ambulance staff, purposively sampled from the recent UK-wide AMBOFALL eSurvey

Introduction One in three people aged 65 and over, and half of those aged 80 and over, fall each year. Previous interview studies found confidence affected ambulance staff decision-making, without exploring what impacts this confidence. This eSurvey aimed to describe the confidence in decision-making of patient facing emergency ambulance staff when attending older adults who have fallen, and the factors which impact this confidence. Methods Ambulance staff were eligible to participate in a national eSurvey, shared by all UK NHS/HSC ambulance services and on social media. Participants were

Introduction Best-practice guidelines recommend falls risk stratification algorithms to identify community aged care clients at risk of falls, and determine who could benefit from Allied Health Professional (AHP) input. However, implementation is constrained by logistical challenges of in-home service delivery. Virtual care delivery offers a promising solution. This study aimed to develop and test a falls risk stratification algorithm and a virtual, AHP-led falls service model for community aged care. Methods We conducted a four-phase, mixed methods study. Phase 1 scoping reviews of falls risk

Introduction: Very elderly individuals are at very high risk of falls and fragility fractures and treatment decisions are often complicated by frailty , multimorbidity and limited life expectancy. Intravenous Zoledronic acid offers effective fracture prevention with ones yearly dosing but safety and benefit in very frail older adults remains uncertain. Objectives: To evaluate the safety and clinical outcomes of iv Zoledronic acid in very elderly patients with corelation with baseline frailty status. Methods: A retrospective observational analysis was conducted in patients aged 85 year and

Introduction: Falls among older adults represent a public health concern. Simple functional tools such as the Eight Alternative Touches test may contribute to the early identification of fall risk and support preventive strategies. The objective of this study was to investigate whether the Eight Alternative Touches test predicts the occurrence of falls in older adults over a one-year period. Method: This longitudinal study included community-dwelling older adults followed for 12 months to record fall occurrences. At baseline, Eight Alternative Touches test, one of the items of the Balance

Title: Ultrasound Muscle Measures Improve Identification of Low Physical and Social Activity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults JQ Chia1,2, A Yeo2, CN Tan2, A Tandon3, WS Lim1,2, J Chew1,2 1Department of Geriatric Medicine, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore 2Institute of Geriatrics and Active Ageing, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore 3Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore Introduction Current sarcopenia diagnosis emphasises reduced muscle quantity. Ultrasound (US), which captures both muscle quantity and quality, may offer additional diagnostic value, but its

Introduction: Falls are common among older persons and can have a major impact on their lives. Wearable sensors offer a promising approach for fall risk screening. However, the acceptability and user experience of such technologies among older persons in their daily lives remain understudied. Therefore, it is important to gain a deeper understanding of how older persons experience this type of technology. Method: A qualitative study was conducted using individual interviews with 21 participants (13 women and 8 men, aged 77–81 years) who had used a wearable sensor for one week to screen for

Introduction Falls among older adults represent a major public health problem. Although fall risk stratification is a key component of prevention, its application in clinical practice remains challenging. Differences in assessment methods may affect the identification of individuals at low to moderate risk and influence the selection of appropriate interventions. Methods This descriptive study recruited older adults of both sexes. Sociodemographic data and health conditions were collected, and three key questions related to falls were applied. Participants were assessed for criteria associated

Introduction Immedicare, a digitally-enabled, round-the-clock NHS clinical service provides remote support to care homes nationwide, with approximately a quarter of clinical consultations pertaining to falls.Falls in older people are often multifactorial, with medication being a significant modifiable risk factor. In July 2024, Immedicare’s pharmacy team launched a targeted, remote falls medication review service (FMRS) to support residents who had fallen and were prescribed at least one medicine identified as contributing to falls, according to the STOPPFall tool (Seppala et al, A&A, 2021)