Accuracy of Berg balance scale to predict falls among community elderly Dwellers

Berg Balance Scale is one of the most applied tests to identify high risk elderly people for fall. Fall is a common health problem among community senior citizens. Diagnostic test to identify high-risk elderly people can prevent or alleviate falls. The purpose of this study was to determine the accuracy of Berg Balance Scale to predict falls among elderly community dwellers.Methods & Materials: This cross-sectional study was conducted among elderly community dwellers in Shahroud, Semnan Providence, Iran. In this study, 1312 elderly individuals were registered for the study, 455 of them were randomly selected as qualified participants. This study is a validity investigation on Berg Balance Scale among elderly community dwellers. To validate the BBS, researchers assessed validity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, positive and negative likelihood ratio The findings of this study showed that 243 subjects were male and 212 subjects were female. The mean age of subjects’ were 71.45±9.25 years. This study showed sensitivity and specificity of. 63 and. 97, respectively. According to the findings of the study, Positive Likelihood Ratio and Negative Likelihood Ratio were calculated as 9.57 and. 39, respectively. The results of the study are in harmony with the hypothesis to design the test, i.e. Berg Balance Scale have acceptable accuracy to identify high-risk community elderly people for falls. However, other influential factors such as personal and environmental variables are necessary to consider for prediction of falls.