The characteristics of falls in an institutionalized elderly cohort in China – A Retrospective observational study

Abstract

Falls are classified by WHO as the second highest cause of accidental injuries in older adults. It remains unclear what characteristics of falls are in elderly individuals that do not present definite causes. A total of 304 institutionalized older adults presented at least one fall were recruited in this retrospective observational study. The fall incidence was significantly higher at 4am-8am, at locations involving sitting down or standing up and involving flat ground, and when individuals going to toilets, getting off bed or walking. The most frequently injured sites were head and lower limb, while the most frequently occurred injury types were bone fractures and bruises. Females were more likely to fall at 12am-4am, have body trunk injured and suffer bone fractures after falls compared with males. This study characterized fall incidents occurred in elderly institutionalized adults, providing useful information for strategy making in the prevention of falls for older adults.