Fall experiences from the perspectives of people with osteoarthritis: in their own words

Abstract

Purpose

To explore real-life experiences of people with osteoarthritis (OA) to increase understanding of how they perceive contributing factors to falls, circumstances at time of falls, and consequences of falls.

Materials and methods

Four focus groups of 3–7 people with OA from the Chicago, IL, USA, and neighboring areas were conducted remotely via web-based videoconferencing. Inclusion criteria included history of falls in previous 12 months and hip and/or knee OA. Focus group transcripts were coded and analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach to identify themes.

Results

Focus group participants (n = 17) described experiences associated with fall-related events that resulted in the identification of four themes: (1) perception of falls and fall risks can be influenced by OA symptoms, (2) ability to remember circumstances of falls are influenced by consequences, (3) behaviors and attitudes that address OA symptoms and avoidance of falls are similar and (4) OA symptoms and falls have common psychological impacts on lives.

Conclusion

Our study highlights how people with OA define falls, perceive contributing factors to falls, and describe general and OA-related factors that contributed to their fall experiences. The shared experiences contributed to the creation of themes that represented various aspects of the circumstances and impact of falls. Consideration for the identified themes may enhance recording and reporting of falls, contribute to development of improved fall risk assessment tools, and prioritize research into the biopsychosocial effects of falls in people with OA.

IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION

• Information about circumstances of a fall such as location, activity, and symptoms of osteoarthritis may be beneficial in creating tailored fall prevention training and education.

• Falls are a common problem for people with lower limb osteoarthritis that can lead to negative changes in activity and quality of life.

• The psychological impact of osteoarthritis symptoms may be contributing to fear of falling and decrease participation in daily activities.

• Awareness of the perceptions people with osteoarthritis have about their symptoms may provide educational and training opportunities to address the benefits of different therapeutic treatments.

• Awareness of perceptions people with osteoarthritis have about their risk of falling may provide educational and training opportunities to address the benefits of different therapeutic treatments.

Keywords:

• Accidental falls
• osteoarthritis
• qualitative research

Acknowledgements

The subjects were recruited through UIC’s Clinical Research Data Warehouse managed by the Center of Clinical and Translational Science, which is supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health, through Grant UL1TR002003. All study procedures were reviewed and approved by the UIC Institutional Review Board.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by UIC Award for Graduate Research and UIC Provost’s Graduate Research Award.