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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Aging and Public Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1416214

Regional Differences in the Association of Healthy Aging with the Incidence of Falls: An Analysis Based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) from 2011 to 2020

Provisionally accepted
Xiang Li Xiang Li 1Chao Wei Chao Wei 1Kejing Hu Kejing Hu 1Jie Sun Jie Sun 2Xiang Gao Xiang Gao 2Jianhong Yang Jianhong Yang 1*
  • 1 department of neurology, the first affiliated hospital of ningbo university, Ningbo, China
  • 2 Department of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Falls frequently occur among the elderly population. In this study, we examined the variations in fall incidence across different regions over time, focusing on the disparities between urban and rural areas among elderly Chinese individuals, Healthy aging is comprised of five dimensions: (1) absence of chronic diseases, (2) good physical functioning, (3) normal cognitive function, (4) active social participation, and (5) absence of depression. Additionally, we explored the relationship between healthy aging and the occurrence of falls in middle-aged and older adults. Falls are defined as events that occurred within the past two years.Results: Among 9,918 participants, 33.8% lived in urban areas and 23.0% achieved healthy aging. In contrast, 66.2% resided in rural areas with 16.5% achieving healthy aging. In 2011, rural residents had a higher fall incidence rate (17% in rural vs. 13.5% in urban); by 2020, the fall rate remained higher in rural areas (19.5% in rural vs. 17.3% in urban). Life satisfaction (HR=1.3, 95%CI: 1.24-1.36) and unhealthy aging (HR=1.08, 95%CI: 1.00-1.16) were risk factors for falls. Subgroup analysis revealed that in rural areas, unhealthy aging increased the risk of falls. In urban areas, the increased risk of falls associated with unhealthy aging was not significant (Rural HR=1.11, Urban HR=1.05,.Healthy aging may be more strongly associated with a lower risk of falls in rural areas, while this association might be less pronounced in urban areas due to different environmental and social factors. This highlights the need for environment-specific fall prevention strategies and targeted measures for the elderly.

    Keywords: fall, healthy aging, middle-aged adults, Urban Population, Rural Population

    Received: 12 Apr 2024; Accepted: 12 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Li, Wei, Hu, Sun, Gao and Yang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jianhong Yang, department of neurology, the first affiliated hospital of ningbo university, Ningbo, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.