Gender differences in longitudinal association of fear of falling with grip strength and depressive symptoms in older adults

The authors investigated the longitudinal associations of fear of falling (FOF) with grip strength and depressive symptoms. We also examined whether the longitudinal relationships are gendered. Data were obtained from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging from 2006 to 2018. A total of 6447 respondents from individuals aged 65 years or older (23,002 person-waves) were included. To account for the unobserved confounders, we estimated individual fixed effects (FE) regression models. Our results indicated that FOF is associated with grip strength and depressive symptoms. Older adults with fear of falling tend to have lower grip strength and great depressive symptoms. In gender-specific analyses, men with FOF are more likely to have lower grip strength and experience more depressive symptoms, while women with FOF are only more likely to present the latter. The authors of this study reveal the importance of managing FOF, which will help older adults age more healthily.