Associations of falls and severe falls with blood pressure and frailty among Chinese community-dwelling oldest olds: The Chinese Longitudinal Health and Longevity Study

Introduction: Falls are a leading cause of death among Chinese oldest olds. However, studies on Chinese community-dwelling older adults are lacking. We aimed to identify the associations of falls and severe falls with blood pressure and frailty among Chinese community-dwelling oldest olds. Methods: Cross-sectional analyses were conducted with 6,595 community-dwelling oldest olds (aged ≥80 years) from 22 Chinese provinces from the Chinese Longitudinal Health and Longevity Study (CLHLS). Systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) were measured twice at participants’ homes, and a 38-item frailty index was used to assess the frailty status of participants. Falls and severe falls were confirmed through face-to-face interviews. Multivariate logistic regression was used to investigate the associations of BP and frailty with falls and severe falls. Results: The mean participant age was 91.0 years, and 56.1% were female. In total, 24.2% participants had a history of fall and 8.3% had a history of severe falls. The multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR) for falls among the oldest old with SBP ≥140 mm Hg compared to those with an SBP of 120–129 mm Hg was 1.20 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01–1.44). The adjusted OR for falls among frail participants compared to robust participants was 1.39 (95% CI, 1.02–1.89). DBP and pre-frailty were not associated with falls after multivariate adjustment. SBP, DBP, and frailty status were not associated with severe falls after multivariate adjustment. Conclusions: SBP and frailty but not DBP and pre-frailty are associated with increased odds of falls among Chinese community-dwelling oldest olds.