Late-life anemia is common and is associated with an increased risk of recurrent falls, suggests a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Dr. Brenda W. J. H. Penninx, from VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, and colleagues analyzed data from 394 subjects between the ages of 65 and 88 years of age who were enrolled in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam.

The researchers used World Health Organization criteria to define anemia based on the results of standard laboratory tests. The subjects kept a weekly record of their falls for three years. Participants who fell at least twice within six months during the three-year follow-up were classified as recurrent fallers.

Twelve percent of subjects had anemia, including 15 percent of men and 9 percent of women. Twenty-two percent of participants reported at least one fall.

Recurrent falls occurred in 38.3 percent of those with anemia and 19.6 percent of those without anemia.

"This study suggests that anemia may directly affect muscle quality," Penninx and colleagues explain.

Some studies have shown that reduced levels of the blood protein hemoglobin, the key feature of anemia, affect the delivery of oxygen to the muscles "and consequently affect muscular strength," they note. Anemia has also been associated with higher inflammation levels, "which may negatively affect physical performance, disability, strength and muscle mass."

Original Source: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, December 2005.