Abstract
Falls are a major threat to the health of older persons. We evaluated potential risk factors for falls in 325 community-dwelling persons aged 60 years or older who had fallen during the previous year, then followed up weekly for 1 year to ascertain nonsyncopal falls and their consequences. Risk factors for having a single fall were few and relatively weak, but multiple falls were more predictable. In multivariate analyses, we found increased odds of two or more falls for persons who had difficulty standing up from a chair, difficulty performing a tandem walk, arthritis, Parkinson's disease, three or more falls during the previous year, and a fall with injury during the previous year, and for whites. The proportion of subjects with two or more falls per year increased from 0.10 for those with none or one of these risk factors to 0.69 for those with four or more risk factors. Among older persons with a history of a recent fall, the risk of multiple nonsyncopal falls can be predicted from a few simple questions and examinations. (<i>JAMA</i>. 1989;261:2663-2668)
Keywords
MedicineProspective cohort studyFalls in older adultsInjury preventionPoison controlEmergency medicineInternal medicine
Related Publications
Risk Factors for Falls among Elderly Persons Living in the Community
To study risk factors for falling, we conducted a one-year prospective investigation, using a sample of 336 persons at least 75 years of age who were living in the community. Al...
World guidelines for falls prevention and management for older adults: a global initiative
Abstract Background falls and fall-related injuries are common in older adults, have negative effects on functional independence and quality of life and are associated with incr...
Factors Associated with Serious Injury During Falls by Ambulatory Nursing Home Residents
Recognizing the importance of identifying fallers at risk for injury, the author studied factors associated with injury during falls by ambulatory nursing home residents. Forty‐...
A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF FALLS IN AN ELDERLY POPULATION: I. INCIDENCE AND MORBIDITY
Falls among the elderly, although associated with substantial morbidity and mortality, have not been previously the subject of a longitudinal study. This five-year prospective s...
Falls and Fractures in Patients With Alzheimer-Type Dementia
The prevention of fall-related injuries in patients with Alzheimer-type dementia (ATD) is hampered by an incomplete understanding of their causes. We studied falls and fractures...
Publication Info
- Year
- 1989
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 261
- Issue
- 18
- Pages
- 2663-2668
- Citations
- 1504
- Access
- Closed
External Links
Social Impact
Altmetric
PlumX Metrics
Social media, news, blog, policy document mentions
Citation Metrics
1504
OpenAlex
Cite This
Michael C. Nevitt
(1989).
Risk factors for recurrent nonsyncopal falls. A prospective study.
JAMA
, 261
(18)
, 2663-2668.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.261.18.2663
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1001/jama.261.18.2663