Fall prevention

Fall prevention is a variety of actions to help reduce the number of accidental falls suffered by older people.

Falls and fall related injuries are among the most serious and common medical problems experienced by older adults. Nearly one-third of older persons fall each year, and half of them fall more than once. Because of underlying osteoporosis and decreased mobility and reflexes, falls often result in hip fractures and other fractures, head injuries, and even death in older adults. Accidental injuries are the fifth most common cause of death in older adults. In around 75% of hip fracture patients, recovery is incomplete and overall health deteriorates.

The most consistently proven predictors of fall risk are history of a fall during the past year and gait and balance abnormalities. Some studies (but not others) indicated that impaired vision, certain medications (especially psychotropic drugs), decreased activities of daily living and impaired cognition are associated with a higher risk of falls. The contribution of orthostatic hypotension to fall risk remains uncertain.

Research indicates that multifactorial intervention programs can reduce the number of falls; in a meta-analysis of studies of older people in general the reduction was around 27%, and in those selected because of a previous fall or other risk factor there was a 14% reduction. Although further research is needed, preventative measures with the greatest likelihood of a positive effect include strength and balance training, home risk assessment, withdrawing psychotropic medication, cardiac pacing for those with carotid sinus hypersensitivity, and T'ai chi. T'ai chi exercises have been shown to provide 47% reduction in falls in some studies but it does not improve measures of postural stability. T'ai chi may gain its success, in part, from promoting confidence rather than primarily reducing the postural instability. [1] Assistive technology can also be applied, although it is mostly reactive in case of a fall.

...
Wikipedia