Predicting the Probability of Falls in Community-Residing Older Adults Using the 8-Foot Up-and-Go: A New Measure of Functional Mobility

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether performance on the 8-ft up-and-go test (UG) could discriminate between older adult fallers (n= 71) and nonfallers (n= 63) and whether it would be as sensitive and specific a predictor of falls as the timed up-and-go test (TUG). Performance on the UG was significantly different between the recurrent faller and nonfaller groups (p< .01), as was performance on the TUG (p< .001). Older adults who required 8.5 s or longer to complete the UG were classified as fallers, with an overall prediction rate of 82%. The specificity of the test was 86% and the sensitivity was 78%. Conversely, the overall prediction rate for older adults who completed the TUG in 10 s or longer was 80%. The specificity of the TUG was 86% and the sensitivity was 71%.