Purpose: To investigate associations between fear of falling (FOF) and recurrent falls among women and men, and gender differences in FOF with respect to International Classification of Functioning (ICF).
Methods: Community-dwelling people (n = 230, 75-93 years, 72% women) were included and followed 1 year regarding falls. Data collection included self-reported demographics, questionnaires, and physical performance-based tests. FOF was assessed with the question "Are you afraid of falling?". RESULTS were discussed with a gender relational approach.
Results: At baseline 55% women (n = 92) and 22% men (n = 14) reported FOF. During the follow-up 21% women (n = 35) and 30% men (n = 19) experienced recurrent falls. There was an association between gender and FOF (p = 0.001), but not between FOF and recurrent falls (p = 0.79), or between gender and recurrent falls (p = 0.32). FOF was related to Personal factors and Activity and Participation. The relationship between FOF and Personal factors was in opposite directions for women and men.
Conclusions: Results did not support the prevailing paradigm that FOF increases rate of recurrent falls in community-dwelling people, and indicated that the answer to "Are you afraid of falling?" might be highly influenced by gendered patterns.
Keywords: Falls; ICF; fear; gender; older people.