Epidemiological survey of the feasibility of broadband ultrasound attenuation measured using calcaneal quantitative ultrasound to predict the incidence of falls in the middle aged and elderly

Objectives: We investigated whether calcaneal quantitative ultrasound (QUS-C) is a feasible tool for predicting the incidence of falls.

Design: Prospective epidemiological cohort study.

Setting: Community-dwelling people sampled in central western Taiwan.

Participants: A cohort of community-dwelling people who were ≥40 years old (men: 524; women: 676) in 2009–2010. Follow-up questionnaires were completed by 186 men and 257 women in 2012.

Methods: Structured questionnaires and broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA) data were obtained in 2009–2010 using QUS-C, and follow-up surveys were done in a telephone interview in 2012. Using a binary logistic regression model, the risk factors associated with a new fall during follow-up were analysed with all significant variables from the bivariate comparisons and theoretically important variables.

Primary outcome measures: The incidence of falls was determined when the first new fall occurred during the follow-up period. The mean fo...