Fear of Falling and Cognitive Impairments in Elderly People with Hip Fractures

Background/Aim The purpose of this study was to investigate the estimated prevalence of dementia and the relationship between cognitive impairment and fear of falling in patients with hip fractures. Methods Analysis 1 included 100 patients with hip fractures. Analysis 2 included a subgroup of subjects with ≥75 years of functional independence: 46 patients with hip fractures and 46 control subjects without hip fractures, and presence or absence of dementia. We used an informant-rated questionnaire including the AD8 for screening for dementia, the Barthel Index for assessing activities of daily living, and the Short Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I) for assessing fear of falling. Results The estimated prevalence of dementia was 66% in patients with hip fractures. There were significant fracture and dementia effects, with significant covariate effects of age and gender on the Short FES-I scores. Conclusion Our results suggested that more than two-thirds of patients with hip fractures had dementia. Fear of falling may reflect not only physical functions but also cognitive impairments.