Table 1 Sample characteristics for RQs 1 (association baseline SRTn and falls), 2a (association ΔSRTn and falls after 10y), 2b (role of dizziness) and 3 (association hearing aid use and falls)
| Â | RQ-1, 2a, 2b | RQ-3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
T0-T2 (N = 496) | T1-T3 (N = 284) | T2 (N = 363) | T3 (N = 147) | ||
Age (years), M ± SD (range) | 53.0 ± 6.6 (40–71) | 55.2 ± 7.8 (40–69) | 53.6 ± 6.7 (40–69) | 57.6 ± 7.5 (40–71) | |
Sex, n (%) | Female | 280 (56.6) | 164 (58.0) | 220 (60.6) | 90 (61.2) |
Living situation, n (%) | Alone | 120 (24.2) | 72 (25.4) | 78 (21.5) | 36 (24.5) |
Level of education, n (%) | Low or medium | 191 (38.6) | 106 (37.3) | 150 (41.3) | 54 (36.7) |
Baseline SRTn, M ± SD |  | -5.57 ± 2.61 | -5.40 ± 2.66 | -2.19 ± 3.08 | -1.27 ± 3.51 |
Baseline SRTn, n (%) | -10.6 to -7.4Â dB SNR | 135 (27.2) | 69 (24.3) | - | - |
| Â | -7.2 to -6.2Â dB SNR | 116 (23.4) | 76 (26.8) | - | - |
| Â | -6.0 to -4.2Â dB SNR | 124 (25.0) | 66 (23.2) | - | - |
| Â | -4.0 to 1.9Â dB SNR | 121 (24.4) | 73 (25.7) | - | - |
ΔSRTn, M ± SD |  | 0.62 (2.63) | 0.58 (2.61) | - | - |
ΔSRTn, n (%) | -8.8 to -1.0 dB SNR | 133 (26.8) | 86 (30.3) | - | - |
| Â | -1.0 to 0.4Â dB SNR | 122 (24.6) | 67 (23.6) | - | - |
| Â | 0.4 to 2.2Â dB SNR | 125 (25.2) | 71 (25.0) | - | - |
| Â | 2.2 to 8.6Â dB SNR | 116 (23.4) | 60 (21.1) | - | - |
Hearing aid(s), n (%) | Yes | 148 (29.8) | 137 (59.6) | 227 (62.5) | 110 (74.8) |
Hearing aid use, n (%) | No use or < 2 years | - | - | 144 (39.7) | 39 (26.5) |
|  |  ≥ 2 years | - | - | 219 (60.3) | 108 (73.5) |
Loneliness, n (%) | Moderate to severe | 248 (50.1) | 134 (47.2) | 186 (51.2) | 67 (45.6) |
Depression, n (%) | Moderate to severe | 86 (17.3) | 45 (15.8) | 67 (18.5) | 21 (15.6) |
Incident falls, n (%) | 0 | 433 (87.3) | 253 (89.1) | 303 (83.5) | 120 (81.6) |
| Â | 1 | 63 (12.7) | 31 (10.9) | 60 (16.5) | 27 (18.4) |
Recurrent falls, n (%) | 0 or 1 | 465 (93.8) | 263 (92.6) | 336 (92.6) | 127 (86.4) |
|  |  ≥ 2 | 31 (6.3) | 21 (7.4) | 27 (7.4) | 20 (13.6) |
Dizziness complaints, n (%) | Yes | 107 (21.6) | 69 (24.3) | 96 (26.4) | 45 (30.6) |
History of dizziness with falls, n (%) | 55 (11.1) | 7 (2.5) | 47 (12.9) | 6 (4.1) | |
Chronic health conditions, n (%) | Severe heart disease | 29 (5.8) | 8 (2.8) | 21 (5.8) | 4 (2.7) |
Hypertension | 121 (24.4) | 73 (25.7) | 89 (24.5) | 35 (23.8) | |
Diabetes | 30 (6.0) | 12 (4.2) | 25 (6.9) | 10 (6.8) | |
Chronic back pain | 87 (17.5) | 40 (14.1) | 75 (20.7) | 18 (12.2) | |
Osteoarthritis of knees and hips | 177 (35.7) | 72 (25.4) | 148 (40.8) | 36 (24.5) | |
Rheumatoid arthritis | 37 (7.5) | 14 (4.9) | 39 (10.7) | 2 (1.4) | |
Other chronic arthritis | 29 (5.8) | 16 (5.6) | 30 (8.3) | 7 (4.8) | |
Other nervous system disorders | 10 (2.0) | 2 (0.7) | - | - | |
Malignant condition or cancer | 22 (4.4) | 17 (6.0) | 16 (4.4) | 7 (4.8) | |
Injury due to accident | 47 (9.5) | 16 (5.6) | 41 (11.3) | 8 (5.4) | |
Missing | 1 (0.2) | 1 (0.3) | 0 | 0 | |
Other health conditions, n (%) | Near- or farsightedness | 117 (23.6) | 51 (18.0) | 112 (29.7) | 42 (28.6) |
Missing | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
Obesity | 70 (14.1) | 38 (13.4) | 66 (18.2) | 21 (14.3) | |
Missing | 3 (0.6) | 3 (1.0) | 0 | 2 (1.3) | |
Mobility issues, n (%) | 113 (22.8) | 51 (18.0) | 87 (24.0) | 25 (17.0) | |
Difficulty performing usual activities, n (%) | 126 (25.4) | 80 (28.2) | 103 (28.4) | 40 (27.2) | |
Missing | 1 (0.2) | 1 (0.3) | 0 | 0 | |
Alcohol, n (%) |  > 2 glasses per drinking occasion | 199 (40.1) | 117 (41.2) | 158 (43.5) | 67 (46.5) |
| Â | Missing | 3 (0.6) | 9 (3.2) | 3 (0.9) | 5 (2.5) |