Risk factors for falls of older citizens

C. Boelens, E.E.G. Hekman, G.J. Verkerke*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    78 Citations (Scopus)
    62 Downloads (Pure)

    Abstract

    OBJECTIVE: Fall prevention is a major issue in the ageing society. This study provides an overview of all risk factors for falls of older citizens.

    METHOD: A literature search was conducted to retrieve studies of the past 25 years. All participants from the studies lived in the community or institutions and were aged 60 or older. The following key word combinations were used, limited to the title: elderly or older people or older adults and fall and risk. The risk factors were categorised as relevant and amendable, relevant but non amendable, inconclusive or unsupported.

    RESULTS: In total 30 publications were studied in 2013 in Enschede, the Netherlands. The relevant intrinsic risk factors are muscle strength, balance capacity, reactive power, dual tasking and sleep disturbance. Relevant extrinsic risk factors are home hazards, wrong use of assistive devices and bad footwear. Behaviour-related risk factors are hurrying, risk taking, physical inactivity and fear of falling. Relevant symptoms that could be caused by underlying risk factors are mobility problems, gait problems, vertigo, use of assisting devices and history of falls.

    CONCLUSIONS: Several risk factors are determined to be relevant and amendable. The provided overview could be used to create fall preventive measures for elderly
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)521-533
    Number of pages13
    JournalTechnology and health care
    Volume21
    Issue number5
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2013

    Keywords

    • Aging
    • falls
    • risk factors

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