73SIMILARITY IN RATES OF FALLS AND FEAR OF FALLING (FOF) BETWEEN GROUPS OF OLDER MEN AND WOMEN WITH AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION (AMD)

Abstract

Introduction: Studies have shown lower rates of falls and FOF in older men than in older women. Many studies have shown that vision loss, including that due to AMD, increases the risk for falls and for FOF in older adults. AMD is a prevalent cause of vision loss, but the question remains whether the rates of falls and, particularly, FOF differ between men and women with AMD. We used self-report data from older adults to address this question. Method(s): Community-dwelling adults (age >=50) with AMD, but no other eye disease, completed the Independent Mobility Questionnaire (IMQ, Turano et al, Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 1999;40:865) and Balance Self-Efficacy Scale (BSE, Gunter et al., J Aging Phys Activ, 2003;11:28). The IMQ includes questions about falls and FOF in the preceding year. Visual acuities (VAs) were measured or were obtained from medical records. Result(s): The 2 groups, 27 men (ages: 74-94; better-eye VAs: 20/17-20/750) and 14 women (63-90; 20/24-20/400), did not differ significantly in age (p = 0.5) or VA (p = 0.94). Men and women did not differ significantly in the percentages of participants reporting at least one fall (men: 51.9%, women: 57.1%, p = 1.0), or in rates of recurrent falls among participants with any fall (men: 57.1%, women: 50.0%, p = 1.0). FOF rates (men: 37.0%, women: 57.1%) did not differ significantly between genders (p = 0.36); nor did the scores on the questionnaires (IMQ (scores/5): men 1.90 +/- 0.69, women 2.44 +/- 0.86, p = 0.054; BSE (scores/180): men 142.5 +/- 39.5, women 118.4 +/- 42.3, p = 0.092). For both genders, >=50% of those without a fall reported FOF. Conclusion(s): Participants with AMD reported high rates of falls and FOF, consistent with earlier studies. Fall rates were similar between men and women, and the FOF rate, although higher for women, was not significantly higher. These findings highlight the need for interventions to decrease falls and FOF in older men and women with vision loss.