Pires, PatríciaCarvalho, JoanaPereira, AnabelaPires, TelmaRibeiro, Oscar2026-04-142026-04-142025Pires, Patrícia; Carvalho, Joana; Pereira, Anabela; Pires, Telma; Ribeiro, Oscar (2025). Prevalence and correlates of fear of falling in community-dwelling older adults. In 21st Congress of the European Geriatric Medicine Society. Reykjavik, Icelandhttp://hdl.handle.net/10198/36534Introduction: Fear of falling (FoF) is highly prevalent among older adults and can negatively affect mobility, physical activity (PA) levels fall risk, and falls. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of fall risk and FoF, and their associations with demographic variables, mobility, physical activity, and fall history in community-dwelling older adults. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with individuals aged C 65 years without cognitive impairment. Data collected included demographics, fall risk (Morse Fall Scale), FoF (Falls Efficacy Scale International-FES-I), mobility and balance (Timed Up and Go-TUG test), PA (Brief Physical Activity Assessment-BPAA), and fall history. Statistical analyses included Pearson’s correlation coefficient, chi-square test, t-test, and ANOVA. Results: The sample comprised 300 older adults (mean age: 74.7 years; 55.3% female). Higher FoF was observed in women (M = 30.4, SD = 10.3) and those aged C 80 years (M = 33.1, SD = 13.3) (p \ 0.001). FoF was positively correlated with impaired mobility/balance (TUG: R = 0.453) and fall risk (R = 0.399), negatively correlated with PA (BPAA: R =- 0.351) and strongly associated with prior falls (R = 0.660) (all p \ 0.001). Conclusions: FoF is common among older adults, particularly women and the oldest age group, and is significantly associated with mobility limitations, low PA levels, increased fall risk, and history of falls. These findings highlight the need for tailored interventions focusing on improving mobility and promoting active lifestyles to mitigate FoF and fall risk.engconference object10.1007/s41999-025-01343-4