Frequency of falls and associated risk factors in people living with HIV: a systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-regression

BACKGROUND: Falls are considered predictive marker of poorer outcomes for people living with HIV. However, the available evidences on the predictive value of falls are controversial. Our aim is to summarize the existing data about falls in PLWHIV. METHODS: A literature search was conducted via electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase and LILACS) for original observational studies. Primary outcome was any and recurrent falls frequency in PLWHIV, and secondary outcomes were factors associated with falls. We conducted a random effects meta-analysis with meta-regression to obtain a summary frequency of falls and recurrent falls. RESULTS: The pooled frequency for any fall was 26% (95% CI: 19% to 34%), compared to 14% for recurrent falls (95% CI: 9% to 22%). In studies comparing PLWHIV and people without HIV, we found no difference for any (pooled OR 1.03, 95% CI: 0.90-1.17) or recurrent falls (pooled OR 1.08, 95% CI: 0.92-1.27) between groups, but falls in middle-aged PLWHIV might be more associated with subjacent clinical conditions like cognitive impairment, polypharmacy, use of medications with action in central nervous system and frailty, classic risk factors for falls in the elderly. CONCLUSIONS: The overall frequency of falls in PLWHIV seems to be lower than that presented by some initial studies and several factors associated with falls are shared with elderly adults. Although both PLWHIV and people without HIV presented similar frequency of falls, we found that these events might be qualitatively different, therefore an appropriate method to evaluate falls in this population to prevent adverse outcomes is warranted

• Population(s)
  • Older adults (>50 years)
  • General HIV+ population
• Mental Health
  • Neurocognitive disorders