A minimally decent stroke association would followup this research with stroke survivors. But we have none, you're screwed.
http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=160732&CultureCode=en
Symptoms of knee instability in older adults may indicate an
increased risk of falling and of experiencing the various physical and
psychological effects that can result from falling, according to a study
published in Arthritis Care & Research, a journal of the American
College of Rheumatology (ACR). The findings indicate that determining
effective treatments for knee instability should be an important
priority as clinicians care for aging patients.
Knee buckling,
often described as a knee “giving way,” is a symptom of knee instability
that frequently affects older individuals, in particular those with
knee pain and knee osteoarthritis (OA), and may be caused by muscle
weakness and balance difficulties. If knee instability leads to frequent
falls and fall-related injuries, exercises and other interventions that
stabilize the knee may help maintain older individuals’ health and
quality of life. To investigate this potential link, Michael Nevitt,
PhD, of the University of California, San Francisco, and his colleagues
prospectively studied 1842 participants in the Multicenter
Osteoarthritis Study (MOST) who were an average of 67 years old at the
start and who had, or were at high risk for, knee osteoarthritis.
At
the end of 5 years, 16.8 percent reported knee buckling, and at the end
of 7 years, 14.1 percent had recurrent (≥2) falls. Bucklers at year 5
had a 1.6- to 2.5-times higher likelihood of recurrent falls, fear of
falling, and poor balance confidence at year 7. Those who fell when a
knee buckled at the start of the study had a 4.5-times, 2-times, and
3-times higher likelihood 2 years later of recurrent falls, significant
fall injuries, and fall injuries that limited activity, respectively,
and they were 4-times more likely to have poor balance.
“Falls,
injury from falls and poor balance confidence are extremely common and
debilitating problems in older people. The present study has
demonstrated for the first time that knee instability and knee buckling
are important causes of these problems in the very large segment of the
older population suffering from knee pain,” said Dr. Nevitt.
“Fortunately, it may be possible to treat knee instability and prevent
knee buckling with targeted exercises. Joint replacement surgery can
also improve knee stability.” He added that pain is the predominant
symptom of knee osteoarthritis, and symptoms of instability such as knee
buckling and falls may be overlooked by treating professionals. The
most important immediate impact of these findings on patient care is
that health professionals should query their patients with knee OA about
instability, buckling, and falls, and work with them to take preventive
actions, including proper use of walking aids, leg strengthening, and
appropriate footwear.”
The study was supported by the National
Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Aging. Dr. Felson was also
supported by the NIHR Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit at the
University of Manchester in the UK.
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