The Severity Level of Knee Osteoarthritis is a Predictor of Falls Among the Elderly

Knee osteoarthritis is the most common degenerative disease that leads to the
disability in elderly. Changes in the joint structure that cause pain, functional
limitations, and decreased the quality of elderly life. Muscle weakness and de
creased proprioception associated with the decrease of balance can cause some
one with Knee OA to have an increase the risk of falling. This study aimed to
determine whether the severity level of knee OA is interdependent with the risk
of falls among the elderly. Cross-sectional study an observational analytic ap
proach, carried out at University Hospital of Muhammadiyah Malang, in May
2023. The sample consisted of 30 elderly subjects recruited and used purposive
sampling for a clinical trial. Oxford Knee Score (OKS) is used to measure the
severity of KOA and the Morse Falls Scale (MFS) is used to measure the risk
of falls of the elderly. The correlation between the severity of knee OA and the
risk of falls was identified through the Fisher exact test. Among 30 subjects with
knee OA. The prevalence of knee OA with poor joint function was 20%. There is
a relationship between the degree of KOA and the level of fall risk. The results of
this study show that there is a relationship between the degree of KOA and the
level of risk of falls in the elderly at UMM Hospital where, the higher the degree
of KOA, the higher the level of risk of falls in the elderly.