Falls, perceived social support and fear of falls in older adults

Abstract

Introduction: Falls affect the functionality, quality of life and socio-familial relationships of older adults. Perceived social support and fear of falling because of a fall are important factors for falls syndrome and its prevention. Objective: To determine the association between previous falls and perceived social support with fear of falling in older adults. Methods: Analytic, cross-sectional and correlational study. The sample consisted of 250 participants. The instruments used were a Sociodemographic Data Form, the International Falls Efficacy Scale and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. A univariate linear regression analysis was performed to determine the relationship between fear of falling and Perceived Social Support in participants with a history of falls. Results: A significant association was found between fear of falling and ASP (p = 0,006), the dimension of perceived family support (p = 0,003) and the dimension of perceived social support from friends (p = 0,031). In the predictive analysis, previous falls and perceived support from friends were found to predict fear of falling (F [2, 248] = 17,22; p<.001; R2=.122). Conclusion: Fear of falling was found to be dependent on previous falls and perception of support by friends, so nursing interventions to reduce fear of falling in MAPs should focus on these variables