A 76 year-old man is brought to your office by his daughter because he has had 3 or 4 falls over the past six months. He and she both wish to know what he can do to reduce the chance of falling.
He doesn’t take any medications. He drinks one glass of wine each evening. He states that his walking is normal and he thinks the falls are the result of not carefully watching his feet and what is in front of them.
You assess his gait by asking him to walk down and back the 60-foot corridor from your office to the door to the waiting room. He has a slow, shuffling gate with a body position that is forward-flexed.
Which of the following conditions is most likely?
This question appears in Med-Challenger Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Review with CME