The Effects of Obesity and Age on Balance Recovery After Slipping

Details

• Personal Author:
  Allin LJ
• Description:
  Falls due to slipping are a serious occupational concern. Slipping is estimated to cause 40-50% of all fall-related injuries. In 2011, falls resulted in 22% of injuries requiring days away from work. Epidemiological data indicates that older and obese adults experience more falls than young, non-obese individuals. An increasingly heavier and older workforce may be exacerbating the problem of slip-induced falls in the workplace. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of obesity and age on slip severity and fall outcome following an unexpected slip. Four groups of participants (young obese, young non-obese, older obese, older non-obese) were exposed to an unexpected slip perturbation. Slip severity (slip distance, slip duration, average slip velocity and peak slip velocity) and slip outcome (fall or recovery) were compared between groups. Obese individuals experienced 8.25% faster slips than non-obese individuals in terms of average slip velocity (p=0.022). Obesity did not affect slip distance, slip duration or peak slip velocity. Obese individuals also experienced more falls; 33.3% of obese individuals fell compared to 8.6% of non-obese (p=0.005). Obese individuals were 8.24 times more likely to experience a fall than non-obese individuals, when adjusting for age, gender and gait speed. No age effects were found for slip severity or slip outcome. This study revealed that obese participants experienced faster slips and more falls than their non-obese counterparts. These results, along with epidemiological data reporting higher fall rates among the obese, indicate that obesity may be a significant risk factor for experiencing slip-induced fall. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidental Falls Accidents Accidents, Occupational Age Factors Biomechanical Phenomena Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Sex Characteristics
• Keywords:
  Accident Analysis Age Factors Biomechanics Gender Factors Kinetics Obesity Physiological Function Physiological Response Risk Factors Slips, Trips, And Falls STF Weight Factors

  More +
• Publisher:
  Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Thesis
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-36
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20053976
• Citation:
  Blacksburg, VA: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 2014 Aug; :1-36
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction
• Performing Organization:
  Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20110901
• Source Full Name:
  The effects of obesity and age on balance recovery after slipping
• End Date:
  20150831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:04ca024746987db08c86b62d28bb4b7f9f4d4ae233ca0c29e952275663d813d2cd038acef8a4b59647aac70138945a9947c2790f8e09aac91cf2596a0d8870e7
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/216630/cdc_216630_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.66 MB ]