Purpose:
Many falls in older people occur after tripping or slipping, mainly due to unsuccessful vertical clearances or horizontal distances. A first fall may be explained by several factors related to aging and can be a trigger to subsequent falls. It is unclear if a history of fall changes the kinematics of obstacle crossing, increasing the risk of trips. Here, we determined whether older women reporting a fall history showed different spatial-temporal kinematic parameters during obstacle crossing than non-fallers. In addition, we investigated the presence of asymmetries between the preferred and non-preferred lower limb during obstacle crossing in fallers and non-fallers.

Methods:
This cross-sectional study recruited older women with a history of fall (n = 10) and without falls (n = 10). They had their kinematic parameters evaluated when walking at self-selected speed along an 8-m walkway, crossing an obstacle positioned in the middle of the walkway, with both preferred and non-preferred limb as the lead limb. The groups were compared, and effects of lower limb preference were also determined in both groups.

Results:
No main effects of group were observed regarding the kinematic variables. An effect of leg preference was found for post-obstacle horizontal distance, which was greater for the preferred limb in both groups.

Conclusions:
In conclusion, the kinematics of gait with obstacle crossing does not differentiate between older women with or without a history of recent fall.