ORs were generally higher for recurrent fallers than for all fallers .
This meta- analysis provides comprehensive evidence -based assessment of risk factors for falls in older people , confirming their multifactorial etiology .
Some nonspecific indicators of high baseline risk were also strong predictors of the risk of falling
BACKGROUND Falls are the main cause of accidental death in persons aged 65 years or older .
Alcohol intake and its relationship with bone mineral density, falls, and fracture risk in older men.
OBJECTIVES To examine the association between  alcohol intake and problem drinking history  and bone mineral density ( BMD ) , falls and fracture risk . DESIGN Cross-sectional and prospect i ve cohort study . SETTING Six U.S. clinical centers . PARTICIPANTS Five thous and nine hundred seventy-four men aged 65 and older . MEASUREMENTS  Alcohol intake and problem drinking histories were ascertained at baseline . Follow-up time was 1 year for falls and a mean of 3.65 years for fractures . RESULTS Two thous and one hundred twenty-one participants ( 35.5 % ) reported limited alcohol intake ( < 12 drinks/y ) ; 3,156 ( 52.8 % ) reported light intake ( < 14 drinks/wk ) , and 697 ( 11.7 % ) reported moderate to heavy intake ( > or = 14 drinks/wk ) in the year before baseline . One thous and one men ( 16.8 % ) had ever had problem drinking . In multivariate models , as alcohol intake increased , so did hip and spine BMD ( P for trend < .001 ) . Greater alcohol intake was not associated with greater risk for nonspine or hip fractures . Men with light intake , but not moderate to heavy intake , had a lower risk of two or more incident falls ( light intake : relative risk ( RR ) = 0.77 , 95 % confidence interval ( CI ) = 0.65 - 0.92 ; moderate to heavy intake : RR = 0.83 , 95 % CI = 0.63 - 1.10 ) than abstainers . Men with problem drinking had higher femoral neck ( + 1.3 % ) and spine BMD ( + 1.4 % ) , and a higher risk of two or more falls ( RR = 1.59 ; 95 % CI = 1.30 - 1.94 ) than those without a history of problem drinking and similar total hip BMD and risk of fracture . CONCLUSION In older men , recent alcohol intake is associated with higher BMD . Alcohol intake and fracture risk is unclear . Light alcohol intake may decrease the risk of falling , but a history of problem drinking increased fall risk
ORs were generally higher for recurrent fallers than for all fallers .
This meta- analysis provides comprehensive evidence -based assessment of risk factors for falls in older people , confirming their multifactorial etiology .
Some nonspecific indicators of high baseline risk were also strong predictors of the risk of falling
BACKGROUND Falls are the main cause of accidental death in persons aged 65 years or older .