Should whole body vibration be used for falls prevention in older people living in the community?

Suzanne M Dyer, Wing S Kwok, Rik Dawson, Ian D Cameron, Catherine Sherrington

Abstract readLetter

In one paragraph

Article in Systematic reviews, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

5 authors.

Suzanne M DyerFlinders University, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, GPO Box 2100, Bedford Park, Adelaide, SA, Australia. sue.dyer@flinders.edu.au.ORCID 0000-0003-2748-8547

Wing S KwokSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Rik DawsonSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Ian D CameronJohn Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Northern Sydney Local Health District and the University of Sydney, St. Leonards, NSW, Australia.

Catherine SherringtonSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Funding

NHMRC-funded Prevention of Falls Injuries Centre for Research Excellence 1198371

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care has recently published a systematic review and network meta-analysis that concludes that whole-body vibration (WBV) has moderate-certainty evidence for falls prevention for older people living in the community. However, as Cochrane Collaboration falls prevention review authors and clinicians, we suggest that when the range of possible effects captured with the 95% confidence intervals, the likelihood of adverse events and the lack of evidence for effectiveness in older people living in care facilities are taken into account, that this intervention should be implemented with caution in this population. Outside of the clinical trial setting, WBV in this population should only be implemented following an individually tailored assessment and with guidance from an appropriately trained health professional.

Indexed as

Accidental FallsVibrationAgedHumansIndependent LivingNetwork Meta-Analysis as TopicSystematic Reviews as TopicCare homesCommunityFallsOlder peopleWhole body vibration

Identifiers

PMID41174672

DOI10.1186/s13643-025-02946-5

PMCPMC12577057

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY

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Registered trials

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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.