Racial/Ethnic predictors of falls among older adults: the health and retirement study

The objective of this study was to examine racial/ethnic differences in the probability and frequency of falls among adults aged 65 and older.

Using data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) from 2000 to 2010, the authors conducted random-intercept logistic and Poisson regression analyses to examine whether race/ethnicity predicted the likelihood of a fall event and the frequency of falls.

The analytic sample included 10,484 older adults. Baseline analyses showed no significant racial/ethnic differences in the probability or number of falls. However, in the longitudinal random-intercept models, African Americans had significantly lower odds (0.65) of experiencing at least one fall compared with non-Hispanic Whites. Among fallers, African Americans had significantly fewer falls (24%) than non-Hispanic Whites, controlling for health and sociodemographic covariates (all ps < .05). Latinos did not differ from non-Hispanic Whites in the likelihood or number of falls.

African Americans are less likely to experience initial or recurrent falls than non-Hispanic Whites.