Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35862463›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of pain (London, England)2022

Severe low back or lower limb pain is associated with recurrent falls among older Australians.

Amy Wing Wai Tse, Stephanie Ward, John J McNeil, Anna Barker, Flavia Cicuttini, Bernadette Mary Fitzgibbon, Sultana Monira Hussain, Alice Owen, Yuanyuan Wang, Rory Wolfe and 1 more

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in European journal of pain (London, England), 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 17% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 10 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.

Amy Wing Wai TseDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia.
Stephanie WardDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia.
John J McNeilSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Anna BarkerSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Flavia CicuttiniSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Bernadette Mary FitzgibbonSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Sultana Monira HussainSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Alice OwenSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Yuanyuan WangSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Rory WolfeSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Julia Fiona-Maree Gilmartin-ThomasSchool of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-1783-0161
Monash University · AUThe University of Melbourne · AUUNSW Sydney · AUAustralian National University · AUWater Corporation of Western Australia (Australia) · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundFew studies have explored the impact of low back or lower limb pain severity on recurrent (≥2) falls in older adults.

objectivesInvestigate the association between the severity of low back or lower limb pain, and ≥2 falls or falls-related injuries.

methodsCommunity-dwelling Australian males and females in the ASPREE Longitudinal Study of Older Persons (ALSOP), aged ≥70 years. Self-reported, cross-sectional questionnaire data regarding number of falls and falls-related injuries in the last 12 months; and sites and severity of pain experienced on most days. Adjusted relative risks (RR) were estimated from multivariable Poisson regression models, for males and females separately.

resultsOf 14,892 ALSOP participants, 13% (n = 1983) reported ≥2 falls ('recurrent fallers') in the last 12 months. Males and females who reported severe low back, or severe lower limb pain on most days were more likely to report ≥2 falls in the last 12 months compared to those with mild pain (lower back: males RR = 1.70 and females RR = 1.5, p = 0.001; lower limb: males RR = 2.0, p < 0.001 and females RR = 1.4, p = 0.003). Female recurrent fallers who reported severe low back (RR = 1.3, p = 0.029) or lower limb (RR = 1.2, p = 0.024) pain on most days were more likely to report a falls-related injury in the last 12 months compared to females with mild pain.

conclusionSevere low back or lower limb pain was associated with an increased likelihood of recurrent falls (males/females) or falls-related injuries (females only). Assessment of severe low back and lower limb pain should be considered as a priority when undertaking falls-risk evaluation. SIGNIFICANCE: Severe low back pain, or severe lower limb pain is associated with an increased likelihood of recurrent falls in older males and females, and an increased likelihood of falls-related injuries in older female recurrent fallers. Assessment and management of severe low back and lower limb pain should be prioritized when undertaking falls-risk assessment. Future longitudinal research is required to further interrogate this relationship and its underlying mechanisms.

Indexed as

Accidental FallsBack PainAgedAged, 80 and overAustraliaCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansLegLongitudinal StudiesMaleRisk AssessmentRisk Factors

Identifiers

PMID35862463
PMCPMC9546413
OpenAlexW4286472072

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.