Falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries for people aged 65 and over (Allen, 2018). Most of these falls are associated with balance problems; most balance problems result from issues within the vestibular system (Mayo Clinic, 2020). T he number of falls continues to rise each year as life expectancy continues to increase (Ortman, 2014, Phillips, 2020). In 2018, over 32,000 deaths and over 8 million injuries resulted from falls among the 65+ population in the U.S. (Moreland et al., 2020). To put the significance of falls into perspective, falls account for more than four times the number of people 65 and older who died from automobile accidents during the same year (CDC Injury Center, 2018). According to the CDC, “If deaths from falls continue to increase at the same rate, the U.S. can expect 59,000 older adults will die because of a fall in 2030. (Allen, 2018)”. Additionally, t...
