The term polypharmacy has negative connotations due to its association with adverse drug reactions and falls. This spectrum of adverse events widens when polypharmacy occurs among the already vulnerable geriatric population. To date, there is no consensus definition of polypharmacy, and diverse definitions have been used by various researchers, the most common being the consumption of multiple ...

BACKGROUND The identification of the occurrence of falls is an important step for screening and for rehabilitation processes for the elderly. The methods of monitoring these events are susceptible to recording biases, and the choice of the most accurate method remains challenging. OBJECTIVES (i) To investigate the agreement between retrospective self-reporting and prospective monitoring of me...

AIMS A prospective study was carried out to investigate the incidence, circumstances, and injuries from falls among frail older people living in three different types of Swedish residential care settings. METHODS The settings were senior citizens' apartments, an old people's home, and a group dwelling for people with dementia. The falls were registered during the three-year study period on a ...

OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of a targeted, multiple intervention falls prevention programme in reducing falls and injuries related to falls in a subacute hospital. DESIGN Randomised controlled trial of a targeted multiple intervention programme implemented in addition to usual care compared with usual care alone. SETTING Three subacute wards in a metropolitan hospital specialising...

OBJECTIVE The presence of an association between white matter hyperintensity (WMH) and the risk of falls in older people is uncertain, with little supporting prospective evidence available at present. We aimed to determine whether WMH was associated with dysfunctions of balance and gait, and other sensorimotor factors leading to falls, and the independent factors related to falls in older Chine...

OBJECTIVE To compare hip fracture risk in soft and hard protected falls with the risk in unprotected falls and to compare the incidence of hip fractures in nursing homes providing soft and hard hip protectors. METHODS An observational study conducted within the framework of a cluster randomized trial in 18 nursing homes. Nursing homes were randomized to offer either soft or hard hip protector...

BACKGROUND with increasing age, causes of syncope are more often of cardiac origin. Syncope in older persons is often mistaken for falls. Data regarding the association between specific cardiovascular conditions, falls and syncope are limited. METHODS cross-sectional analyses within a population sample aged 50+ (n = 8,173). Syncope and falls in the past year, cardiovascular conditions and co-...

BACKGROUND around one-fourth of all falls in healthcare settings are falls from bed. The role of bedrails in falls prevention is controversial, with a prevailing orthodoxy that bedrails are harmful and ineffective. OBJECTIVE to summarise and critically evaluate evidence on the effect of bedrails on falls and injury DESIGN systematic literature review using the principles of QuoRoM guidance....