Falls are a leading cause of nursing home admission and hospitalization among older adults; however, there is surprisingly little research that examines risk and protective factors for falls among community-dwelling older men. Our study is the first to investigate fall events among older men—and to examine racial and ethnic differences in fall risk among men—using a population-based sample.We analyzed data from 4429 community-dwelling men from the Health and Retirement Study aged 65 and older. We used multinomial logistic regression analyses to examine risk and protective factors for single and recurrent (1 or more) self-reported fall profiles at baseline (2000) and longitudinally (2000–2010). We examined self-reported fall events by race/ethnicity (non-Hispanic white, African American, and Hispanic/Latino), controlling health and socio-demographic characteristics.In baseline analyses, African American men were less likely than non-Hispanic white men to experience multiple fall events, compared to no falls (RRR: 0.63, p=0.005). Racial/ethnic differences in single or recurrent fall events were not statistically significant in longitudinal analyses. Fall risk did not differ between non-Hispanic white and Hispanic/Latino older men.Consistent with other population-based studies, certain characteristics (e.g., older age, ADL limitations, greater depressive symptoms) were associated with a higher relative risk of single and/or recurrent fall events over follow-up.This study identifies risk and protective factors of single and recurrent falls among older men, which can inform clinical practice and falls prevention programs for diverse community-residing older adult populations.
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