Yogi, R.R., Sammy, I.A. orcid.org/0000-0003-4265-5569, Paul, J.F. et al. (3 more authors) (2018) Falls in Older People: Comparing Older and Younger Fallers in a Developing Country. European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery, 44 (4). pp. 567-571. ISSN 1863-9933
Abstract
Purpose
While falls are common in older people, causing significant mortality and morbidity, this phenomenon has not been extensively studied in the Caribbean. This study aimed to compare falls in older and younger people in this setting.
Methods
We conducted a prospective observational study of older trauma patients in Trinidad, comparing older and younger patients sustaining falls.
Results
1432 adult trauma patients were included (1141 aged 18 - 64 years and 291 aged 65 years and older). Older fallers were more likely to be female (66.7% vs 47.2%; p <.001), suffer from multiple pre-existing diseases (24.7% vs 2.4%; p <.001) and take multiple medications (16.1% vs 0.8%; p <.001). They also sustained more severe injuries and presented with higher acuity than younger fallers. Admission rates were higher among older fallers (29.9% vs 13.1%; p <.001).
Conclusions
In our study, older patients who fell were a distinct group from younger falls victims, with unique demographic, clinical and injury related characteristics. Their increased risk of injury within the home, coupled with their propensity for more severe injuries made them a high risk patient group. More research is needed to better understand this patient group and plan specific preventive interventions.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Editors: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2017. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. |
Keywords: | Aged; Accidental falls; Wounds and injuries; Hospital emergency service |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Health and Related Research (Sheffield) > ScHARR - Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 11 Jul 2017 09:55 |
Last Modified: | 02 Nov 2023 16:41 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Verlag |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s00068-017-0818-2 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:118847 |
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Filename: Yogi_et_al-2017-European_Journal_of_Trauma_and_Emergency_Surgery.pdf
Licence: CC-BY 4.0