Study Shows Falls are Associated with Types of Mobility Device and Characteristics of People with Mobility Limitations

Published in Complex Rehab on August 19, 2024

Clinical investigators from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) reported in a recent publication that different types of mobility devices and certain characteristics of people with limited mobility are associated with reported falls.

The study, published last month in the journal Disability & Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, analyzed over 11,000 deidentified cases from the Functional Mobility Assessment and Uniform Dataset (FMA/UDS) Registry that is supported by U.S. Rehab, a division of VGM & Associates. These were people with mobility impairments seeking an assessment for a new mobility device. 52% of the total sample reported at least one fall in the past three months prior to their assessment for a new device. Almost half (47%) who reported a fall were using a walking aid or no device at all. Additionally, persons with progressively acquired disabilities (i.e., Parkinson’s disease, osteoarthritis, and cardiopulmonary disease) reported higher rates of falls than those with congenital disabilities (i.e., cerebral palsy and spina bifida). Fewer falls were also reported in people using custom fitted manual wheelchairs and powered mobility devices.

“The findings from this study provide more evidence as to how properly fitted mobility devices matched to a person’s needs can contribute to the reduction of falls,” says Mark Schmeler, study co-author, who oversees management of the FMA/UDS Registry as an occupational therapist and associate professor at Pitt’s Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology.

“The findings indicate earlier interventions for fall prevention, including professional wheelchair evaluations, may be warranted,” says lead author Corey Morrow, assistant professor and LeaRRn Scholar at MUSC and an occupational therapist. “However, further research will explore the long-term impact of properly prescribed mobility devices on falls,” Morrow further stated.

Tyler Mahncke, president of U.S. Rehab stated, “I thank all members and clinical partners who are contributing to the registry as large data and research is essential to advocate for the field of complex rehabilitation technology.”

The research article can be found at https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2024.2369654.

The contents of this publication were developed under a Corporate Research Agreement (Award ID: SRA00000765) between the University of Pittsburgh and the Van G. Miller (VGM) & Associates. Additionally, this project was funded as a sub-award through the Learning Health Systems Rehabilitation Research Network (LeaRRn). LeaRRn is supported by the National Institutes of Health under Award Number 1P2CHD101895-01 through the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute of Nursing Research and by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the NIH, Grant/Award Number: TL1TR001858.

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