Khuna Lalita, Plukwongchuen Theardkhwan, Yaemrattanakul Weeranan, Lee Pei-Yun
Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand.
Department of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.
Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 May 23;104(21):e42578. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000042578.
Identifying fall risk among older adults with knee osteoarthritis (OA) is essential for targeted prevention. Although functional tests assessing mobility, strength, and balance are widely used, no consensus exists on the most effective test to identify fall risk in this population. This study aimed to compare functional performance tests and fall risk between older adults with and without knee OA, compare the tests in older adults with and without fall risk in both groups, and determine cutoff scores for these tests to identify fall risk among older adults with knee OA. This cross-sectional study included 106 participants aged ≥ 60 years (53 in each group). The participants completed the Thai falls risk assessment test and performed 5 functional performance tests, including the timed-up and go test (TUGT), functional reach test, alternate-step test (AST), 5 times sit-to-stand test (FTSST), and 10-meter walk test (10MWT). The independent t-test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare outcomes, and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to identify the optimal cutoff scores. Older adults with knee OA had a higher fall risk and performed significantly worse on the TUGT, AST, FTSST, and 10MWT than those without knee OA. The TUGT and AST scores effectively distinguished the fall risk between older adults with and without knee OA. cutoff scores of 10.5 and 24.5 seconds for the TUGT and AST, respectively, had acceptable area under curve values, effectively discriminating fall risk among older adults with knee OA. Older adults with knee OA exhibit a higher risk of falls and reduced functional abilities. The TUGT and AST may serve as useful fall-risk screening tools among this population.
识别老年膝骨关节炎（OA）患者的跌倒风险对于有针对性的预防至关重要。尽管评估活动能力、力量和平衡的功能测试被广泛应用，但对于识别该人群跌倒风险的最有效测试尚无共识。本研究旨在比较有和没有膝OA的老年人的功能表现测试及跌倒风险，比较两组中有和没有跌倒风险的老年人的测试情况，并确定这些测试的临界值以识别老年膝OA患者的跌倒风险。这项横断面研究纳入了106名年龄≥60岁的参与者（每组53人）。参与者完成了泰国跌倒风险评估测试，并进行了5项功能表现测试，包括计时起立行走测试（TUGT）、功能性伸展测试、交替步测试（AST）、5次坐立测试（FTSST）和10米步行测试（10MWT）。采用独立t检验和曼-惠特尼U检验比较结果，并使用受试者工作特征曲线确定最佳临界值。与没有膝OA的老年人相比，膝OA老年人的跌倒风险更高，在TUGT、AST、FTSST和10MWT测试中的表现明显更差。TUGT和AST得分有效区分了有和没有膝OA的老年人的跌倒风险。TUGT和AST的临界值分别为10.5秒和24.5秒，曲线下面积值可接受，能有效区分老年膝OA患者的跌倒风险。老年膝OA患者跌倒风险更高且功能能力下降。TUGT和AST可作为该人群有用的跌倒风险筛查工具。
