Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Fear of Falling, and Balance in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who work with older adults in outpatient, home health, skilled nursing, or community wellness settings, and who encounter fear of falling and activity avoidance alongside balance and strength deficits.

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. The material is also relevant to rehabilitation staff, clinical educators, and program coordinators involved in community fall-prevention programming.

Intended audience

Physical Therapy

Level

Introductory

Delivery format

Online, asynchronous, self-paced course: interactive reading with audio or video, and a scored post-test.

Based on

This course reports the findings of a single published systematic review and meta-analysis. Every claim, number, and conclusion presented here traces to that source document.

Saragih ID, Suarilah I, Ko HK, Wangi K, Lee BO. Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Fall Prevention for Older Adults: A Meta-Analysis. Worldviews Evid Based Nurs. 2026;23(4):e70161. doi:10.1111/wvn.70161. PMID: 42427163. PMCID: PMC13351814.

What this course is and is not

This is an evidence-report course. It describes what the review authors searched for, who was studied, what the pooled results showed, what the authors said the limits were, and what they concluded. It is not a training program in delivering cognitive behavioral therapy, and it does not issue clinical recommendations of its own.

After completing this course, you will be able to:

1. Describe the population, the interventions, and the outcomes that this meta-analysis of 17 randomized trials set out to examine.
2. State the direction of the pooled findings for fear of falling and balance, and distinguish those from the outcomes where the review found no clear improvement.
3. Explain the limitations the authors reported and the conclusion they drew about pairing cognitive behavioral programs with exercise.

1. Start Here: How This Course Works
2. Podcast: CBT, Fear of Falling, and Balance in Older Adults (about nine minutes)
3. Falls, Fear, and the Avoidance Cycle: What the Review Set Out to Answer
4. Inside the Review: How 17 Randomized Trials Were Found and Combined
5. What the Pooled Results Showed: Fear of Falling, Balance, and the Outcomes That Did Not Move
6. Where the Evidence Is Thin: Bias, Setting, and Small Pools of Studies
7. From Findings to the Clinic: What the Authors Concluded
8. Key Takeaways
9. Post-Test and Course Evaluation

Quinn Millington, PT, DPT, ECS is the instructor of record: the licensed clinician who reviewed this course and signed off on it. The name and credentials print on the certificate.

Disclosures. This course was developed by The ConEd Solution, which has a financial interest in its sale. No outside funding or sponsorship was received. The instructor of record has no affiliation with the authors of the source publication or their institutions.

This course awards 0.5 contact hours (30 min). How you earn them:

1. Complete the course. Every lesson, in order.
2. Pass the post-test. Score 80% or higher. Retakes are allowed.
3. Complete the evaluation. A short form rating each learning objective and the course.
4. Download your certificate. It is issued on completion and stays available in My Account.

The episode time is its measured length. Reading, post-test and evaluation times are estimates.

This course is designed to satisfy the quality requirements state boards set for continuing education. Requirements vary by state, and confirming that a course fits your renewal is up to you. Each state’s own acceptance statement is in the credit panel on this page.

1. This course reports the findings of a single published systematic review and meta-analysis. Every claim, number, and conclusion presented here traces to that source document.
2. Saragih ID, Suarilah I, Ko HK, Wangi K, Lee BO. Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Fall Prevention for Older Adults: A Meta-Analysis. Worldviews Evid Based Nurs. 2026;23(4):e70161. doi:10.1111/wvn.70161. PMID: 42427163. PMCID: PMC13351814.
3. What this course is and is not
4. This is an evidence-report course. It describes what the review authors searched for, who was studied, what the pooled results showed, what the authors said the limits were, and what they concluded. It is not a training program in delivering cognitive behavioral therapy, and it does not issue clinical recommendations of its own.