This study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and was carried out in 16 university hospitals with 686 outpatients.
What the participants did was a one-leg balance where they were asked to stand on one leg for as long as possible. The results were abnormal when the participant was unable to stand on one leg for 5 seconds or more.
The participants who were judged abnormal on the test showed significantly more cognitive decline at 12, 18 and 24 months than participants who were normal at the beginning of the study and at the follow-up.
The researchers believe that the one-leg balance test is a predictor of advanced dementia.