New study identifies a marker linked to a 39% higher risk of serious fall in older women.
The build-up of calcium in a major blood vessel has been associated with a 39% higher risk of serious falls in older women, a new study found. The research was led by Associate Professor Joshua Lewis, a National Heart Foundation Future Leader Fellow from Edith Cowan University (ECU).
The form of calcium build-up studied is known as abdominal aortic calcification, and occurs in the abdomen’s largest artery, the abdominal aorta. The new study showed that hardening of this artery can be identified in its early stages with a common bone density scan.
The findings hold potential to help medical practitioners identify people who are at high risk of serious falls, which are estimated to cause 5,165 deaths in Australia each year, and 680,000 deaths globally.
About the findings
In Australia, serious falls are one of the leading causes of injury and disability among older people. In 2017-18, about 42% of hospitalised injury cases and 40% of injury deaths were due to falls, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
This study is the first to investigate whether abdominal aortic calcification (AAC), measured through a bone density scan, can identify women at high risk of serious falls.
The findings of this new study may help design a way to help people prevent falls. “We found more than 7 out of 10 women in our study had AAC, which is an alarming number of people at risk of suffering a really serious fall,” said co-lead author, ECU PhD candidate Abadi Gebre, in a press release.
“More than half a million older Australians undergo routine bone mineral density testing every year to detect osteoporosis,” said Mr Gebre. “If we can capture an additional scan to look for evidence of AAC at the same time, we can potentially identify and prevent future harmful falls. We often wait until a person suffers a fall to intervene and at that point the damage is already done,” he added.
According to Prof Lewis, their findings demonstrate the importance of identifying AAC early on. “We know that AAC identifies women at a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes, but our research now shows that it also identifies women at a higher falls risk, independent of other falls risk factors and muscle strength,” he said.
The next question to tackle is why ACC and falls are linked, researchers said, and whether improvements in dietary and lifestyle factors can help prevent both cardiovascular disease and the risk of serious falls.