Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-j824f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T19:58:36.302Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Epidemiology of Falls in Older Age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 March 2011

Nancye May Peel
Nancye May Peel*
Affiliation:
Centre for Research in Geriatric Medicine, The University of Queensland
*
*Correspondence and requests for offprints should be sent to / La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à: Nancye May Peel, Ph.D. Centre for Research in Geriatric Medicine The University of Queensland Level 2, Building 33 Princess Alexandra Hospital Ipswich Road Woolloongabba Queensland 4102 Australia (n.peel@uq.edu.au)
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Worldwide, falls among older people are a public health concern because of their frequency and adverse consequences in terms of morbidity, mortality, and quality of life, as well as their impact on health system services and costs. This epidemiological review outlines the public health burden of falls and fall-related injuries and the impact of population aging. The magnitude of the problem is described in terms of the classification of falls and measurement of outcomes, including fall incidence rates across settings, sociodemographic determinants, international trends, and costs of falls and fall-related injuries. Finally, public health approaches to minimize falls risk and consequent demand on health care resources are suggested.

Résumé

Les chutes chez les personnes agées sont une préoccupation de la santé publiquedans le monde entier en raison de leur fréquence et les conséquences néfastes en terms de morbidité, mortalité et de la qualité de vie, ainsi que leur impact sur les services et les coûts du système de santé. Cette étude épidémiologique décrit la charge de la santé publique de chutes et de blessures liées aux chutes et l’impact sur les chutes du vieillissement de la population. L’ampleur du problème est décrit en termes du classement des chutes et la mesure des résultats, y compris l’incidence des chutes et des blessures liées dans tous les milieux, les déterminants socio-démographiques, les tendance internationales, et le coût des chutes et des blessures liées aux chutes. Enfin, des approches de santé publique afin de minimiser les risques de chutes et la demande conséquente sur les ressources de soins de santé sont récommandés.

Keywords

l’épidémiologiechutesblessures liées aux chutespersonnes âgéesimpact sur la santé publiqueepidemiologyfallsfall-related injuriesseniorspublic health impact
Type
Special Section: Falls Prevention / Section spéciale: Prévention des chutes
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 30 , Issue 1 , March 2011 , pp. 7 - 19
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Allen, T. (2004). Preventing falls in older people: Evaluating a peer education approach. British Journal of Community Nursing, 9(5), 195–200.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
American Geriatrics Society, British Geriatrics Society, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Panel on Falls Prevention. (2001). Guideline for the prevention of falls in older persons. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 49(5), 664–672.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anstey, K.J., Burns, R., von Sanden, C., & Luszcz, M.A. (2008). Psychological well-being is an independent predictor of falling in an 8-year follow-up of older adults. The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 63(4), P249–P257.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. (2009a). Preventing falls and harm from falls in older people: Best practice guidelines for Australian community care. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Commonwealth Government.Google Scholar
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. (2009b). Preventing falls and harm from falls in older people: Best practice guidelines for Australian hospitals. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Commonwealth Government.Google Scholar
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. (2009c). Preventing falls and harm from falls in older people: Best practice guidelines for Australian residential aged care facilities. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Commonwealth Government; 2009.Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2007). Older Australia at a Glance. (Cat. No. AGE 52). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2009). Towards National Indicators of Safety and Quality in Health Care. (Cat. No. HSE 75). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Begg, S., Vos, T., Barker, B., Stevenson, C., Stanley, L., & Lopez, A.D. (2007). The Burden of Disease and Injury in Australia 2003. (Cat. No. PHE 82). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Bell, A.J., Talbot-Stern, J.K., & Hennessy, A. (2000). Characteristics and outcomes of older patients presenting to the emergency department after a fall: A retrospective analysis. The Medical Journal of Australia, 173(4), 179–182.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bradley, C., & Harrison, J. (2007). (Cat. No. INJCAT 97). Fall-related hospitalisations among older people: Sociocultural and regional aspects. Adelaide, South Australia: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Bradley, S.M., Karani, R., McGinn, T., & Wisnivesky, J. (2010). Predictors of serious injury among hospitalized patients evaluated for falls. Journal of Hospital Medicine, 5(2), 63–68.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bradley, C., & Pointer, S. (2009). (Cat. No. INJCAT 122). Hospitalisations due to falls by older people, Australia 2005-06. Adelaide, South Australia: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Brennan, J., Johansen, A., Butler, J., Stone, M., Richmond, P., Jones, S., et al. . (2003). Place of residence and risk of fracture in older people: A population-based study of over 65-year-olds in Cardiff. Osteoporosis International, 14(6), 515–519.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bulajic-Kopjar, M. (2000). Seasonal variations in incidence of fractures among elderly people. Injury Prevention, 6(1), 16–19.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Butler, M., Kerse, N., & Todd, M. (2004). Circumstances and consequences of falls in residential care: The New Zealand story. The New Zealand Medical Journal, 117(1202), U1076.Google ScholarPubMed
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2006). Fatalities and injuries from falls among older adults–United States, 1993-2003 and 2001-2005. MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 55(45), 1221–1224.Google Scholar
Cesari, M., Landi, F., Torre, S., Onder, G., Lattanzio, F., & Bernabei, R. (2002). Prevalence and risk factors for falls in an older community-dwelling population. The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57(11), M722–M726.Google Scholar
Chan, B.K., Marshall, L.M., Winters, K.M., Faulkner, K.A., Schwartz, A.V., & Orwoll, E.S. (2007). Incident fall risk and physical activity and physical performance among older men: The Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 165(6), 696–703.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chan, K.M., Pang, W.S., Ee, C.H., Ding, Y.Y., & Choo, P. (1997). Epidemiology of falls among the elderly community dwellers in Singapore. Singapore Medical Journal, 38(10), 427–431.Google ScholarPubMed
Chen, J.S., Sambrook, P.N., Simpson, J.M., Cameron, I.D., Cumming, R.G., Seibel, M.J., et al. . (2009). Risk factors for hip fracture among institutionalised older people. Age and Ageing, 38(4), 429–434.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chu, L.W., Chi, I., & Chiu, A.Y. (2005). Incidence and predictors of falls in the Chinese elderly. Annals of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 34(1), 60–72.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Corsinovi, L., Bo, M., Ricauda Aimonino, N., Marinello, R., Gariglio, F., Marchetto, C., et al. . (2009). Predictors of falls and hospitalization outcomes in elderly patients admitted to an acute geriatric unit. Archives of Gerontology & Geriatrics, 49(1), 142–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Culhane, K.M., O’Connor, M., Lyons, D., & Lyons, G.M. (2005). Accelerometers in rehabilitation medicine for older adults. Age and Ageing, 34(6), 556–560.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cummings, S.R., Nevitt, M.C., & Kidd, S. (1988). Forgetting falls. The limited accuracy of recall of falls in the elderly. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 36(7), 613–616.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Davies, A.J., & Kenny, R.A. (1996). Falls presenting to the accident and emergency department: Types of presentation and risk factor profile. Age and Ageing, 25(5), 362–366.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, J.W., Ross, P.D., Nevitt, M.C., & Wasnich, R.D. (1997). Incidence rates of falls among Japanese men and women living in Hawaii. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 50(5), 589–594.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ellis, A.A., & Trent, R.B. (2001). Hospitalized fall injuries and race in California. Injury Prevention, 7(4), 316–320.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Faulkner, K., Cauley, J., Zmuda, J., Griffin, J., & Nevitt, M. (2003). Is social integration associated with the risk of falling in older community-dwelling women? The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 58(10), M954–M959.Google ScholarPubMed
Fleming, J., Matthews, F.E., Brayne, C., Cc75c Study Collaboration CC. (2008). Falls in advanced old age: Recalled falls and prospective follow-up of over-90-year-olds in the Cambridge City over-75s Cohort study. BMC Geriatrics, 8(1), 6.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fletcher, P.C., & Hirdes, J.P. (2002). Risk factors for falling among community-based seniors using home care services. The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57(8), M504–M510.Google ScholarPubMed
Formiga, F., Ferrer, A., Duaso, E., Olmedo, C., & Pujol, R. (2008). Falls in nonagenarians living in their own homes: The Nonasantfeliu study. The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging, 12(4), 273–276.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ganz, D.A., Higashi, T., & Rubenstein, L.Z. (2005). Monitoring falls in cohort studies of community-dwelling older people: Effect of the recall interval. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 53(12), 2190–2194.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gribbin, J., Hubbard, R., Smith, C., Gladman, J., & Lewis, S. (2009). Incidence and mortality of falls amongst older people in primary care in the United Kingdom. QJM, 102(7), 477–483.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Haines, T.P., Cornwell, P., Fleming, J., Varghese, P., & Gray, L. (2008). Documentation of in-hospital falls on incident reports: Qualitative investigation of an imperfect process. BMC Health Services Research, 8, 254.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Haines, T.P., Massey, B., Varghese, P., Fleming, J., & Gray, L. (2009). Inconsistency in classification and reporting of in-hospital falls. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 57(3), 517–523.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hartholt, K.A., van der Velde, N., Looman, C.W., van Lieshout, E.M., Panneman, M.J., van Beeck, E.F., et al. . (2010). Trends in fall-related hospital admissions in older persons in the Netherlands. Archives of Internal Medicine, 170(10), 905–911.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hauer, K., Lamb, S.E., Jorstad, E.C., Todd, C., & Becker, C. (2006). Systematic review of definitions and methods of measuring falls in randomised controlled fall prevention trials. Age and Ageing, 35(1), 5–10.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Healey, F., Scobie, S., Oliver, D., Pryce, A., Thomson, R., & Glampson, B. (2008). Falls in English and Welsh hospitals: A national observational study based on retrospective analysis of 12 months of patient safety incident reports. Quality and Safety in Health Care, 17(6), 424–430.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Heinrich, S., Rapp, K., Rissmann, U., Becker, C., & Konig, H.H. (2009). Cost of falls in old age: A systematic review. Osteoporosis International, 21(6), 891–902.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Helps, Y.L., & Harrison, J.E. (2006). Hospitalised Injury of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People 2000–02. (Cat. No. INJCAT 94). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Hendrie, D., Hall, S.E., Legge, M., & Arena, G. (2003). Injury in Western Australia: The health system costs of falls in older adults in Western Australia. Perth, Western Australia: Injury Research Centre, The University of Western Australia.Google Scholar
Henley, G., & Harrison, J. (2009). Injury Deaths, Australia 2004–05. (Cat. No. INJCAT 127). Adelaide, South Australia: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Hill, K., Schwarz, J., Flicker, L., & Carroll, S. (1999). Falls among healthy, community-dwelling, older women: A prospective study of frequency, circumstances, consequences and prediction accuracy. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 23(1), 41–48.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hughes, K., van Beurden, E., Eakin, E.G., Barnett, L.M., Patterson, E., Backhouse, J. et al. . (2008). Older persons’ perception of risk of falling: Implications for fall-prevention campaigns. American Journal of Public Health, 98(2), 351–357.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Iinattiniemi, S., Jokelainen, J., & Luukinen, H. (2009). Falls risk among a very old home-dwelling population. Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care, 27(1), 25–30.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ingarfield, S.L., Finn, J.C., Jacobs, I.G., Gibson, N.P., Holman, C.D., Jelinek, G.A., et al. . (2009). Use of emergency departments by older people from residential care: A population based study. Age and Ageing, 38(3), 314–318.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kannus, P., Khan, K.M., & Lord, S.R. (2006). Preventing falls among elderly people in the hospital environment. The Medical Journal of Australia, 184(8), 372–373.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kannus, P., Niemi, S., Parkkari, J., Palvanen, M., Vuori, I., & Jarvinen, M. (2006). Nationwide decline in incidence of hip fracture. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 21(12), 1836–1838.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Karmel, R., Lloyd, J., & Anderson, P. (2008). Movement from Hospital to Residential Aged care. (Data Linkage Series No. 6. Cat. No. CSI 6). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Kinsella, K., & He, W. (2009). An Aging World: 2008. (International Population Reports P95/09-1). Washington, DC: US Census Bureau.Google Scholar
Kojima, S., Furuna, T., Ikeda, N., Nakamura, M., & Sawada, Y. (2008). Falls among community-dwelling elderly people of Hokkaido, Japan. Geriatrics & Gerontology International, 8(4), 272–277.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Krauss, M.J., Nguyen, S.L., Dunagan, W.C., Birge, S., Costantinou, E., Johnson, S., et al. . (2007). Circumstances of patient falls and injuries in 9 hospitals in a midwestern healthcare system. Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, 28(5), 544–550.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lach, H.W. (2005). Incidence and risk factors for developing fear of falling in older adults. Public Health Nursing, 22(1), 45–52.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lach, H.W., Reed, A.T., Arfken, C.L., Miller, J.P., Paige, G.D., Birge, S.J., et al. . (1991). Falls in the elderley: Reliability of a classification system. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 39(2), 197–202.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lamb, S.E., Jorstad-Stein, E.C., Hauer, K., & Becker, C. (2005). Development of a common outcome data set for fall injury prevention trials: The Prevention of Falls Network Europe consensus. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 53(9), 1618–1622.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leslie, W.D., O’Donnell, S., Jean, S., Lagace, C., Walsh, P., Bancej, C., et al. . (2009). Trends in hip fracture rates in Canada. JAMA, 302(8), 883–889.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Li, W., Keegan, T.H., Sternfeld, B., Sidney, S., Quesenberry, C.P. Jr., & Kelsey, J.L. (2006). Outdoor falls among middle-aged and older adults: A neglected public health problem. American Journal of Public Health, 96(7), 1192–1200.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lord, S.R., Sherrington, C., Menz, H.B., & Close, J.C.T. (2007). Falls in older people: Risk factors and strategies for prevention (2nd ed.). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mackenzie, L., Byles, J., & D’ Este, C. (2006). Validation of self-reported fall events in intervention studies. Clin Rehabil, 20(4), 331–339.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Masud, T., & Morris, R.O. (2001). Epidemiology of falls. Age and Ageing, 30(Suppl. 4), 3–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McInnes, E., & Askie, L. (2004). Evidence review on older people’s views and experiences of falls prevention strategies. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 1(1), 20–37.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Morris, M., Osborne, D., Hill, K., Kendig, H., Lundgren-Lindquist, B., Browning, C., et al. . (2004). Predisposing factors for occasional and multiple falls in older Australians who live at home. The Australian Journal of Physiotherapy, 50(3), 153–159.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
National Ageing Research Institute. (2004). An Analysis of Research on Preventing Falls and Falls Injury in Older People: Community, residential care and hospital settings. (Report to the Department of Health and Ageing, Injury Prevention Section). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Commonwealth of Australia.Google Scholar
National Collaborating Centre for Nursing and Supportive Care. (2004). Clinical Practice Guideline for the Assessment and Prevention of Falls in Older People. London: London Royal College of Nursing. Retrieved May 25, 2009, fromhttp://www.guideline.gov/summary/summary.aspx?view_id=1&doc_id=6118Google Scholar
Noury, N., Fleury, A., Rumeau, P., Bourke, A.K., Laighin, G.O., Rialle, V., et al. . (2007, August). Fall detection–principles and methods. Proceedings of the 29th Annual International Conference of the IEEE EMBS, 2007, 1663–1666.Google ScholarPubMed
Oliver, D., & Healy, F. (2009). Falls risk prediction tools for hospital inpatients: Do they work? Nursing Times, 105(7), 18–21.Google ScholarPubMed
Oliver, D., Killick, S., Even, T., & Willmott, M. (2008). Do falls and falls-injuries in hospital indicate negligent care – and how big is the risk? A retrospective analysis of the NHS Litigation Authority Database of clinical negligence claims, resulting from falls in hospitals in England 1995 to 2006. Quality & Safety in Health Care, 17(6), 431–436.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peel, N.M. (2000). Validating recall of falls by older people. Accident; Analysis and Prevention, 32(3), 371–372.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Peel, N.M., Bartlett, H.P., & McClure, R.J. (2007). Healthy aging as an intervention to minimize injury from falls among older people. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1114(1), 162–169.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Peel, N.M., Bell, R.A.R., & Smith, K. (2008). Queensland Stay On Your Feet® Good Practice Community Guidelines: Preventing Falls, Harm from Falls and Promoting Healthy Active Ageing in Older Queenslanders. Brisbane, Queensland: Queensland Health. Retrieved May 24, 2009, fromhttp://www.health.qld.gov.au/stayonyourfeet/resources.aspGoogle Scholar
Peel, N.M., Kassulke, D.J., & McClure, R.J.` (2002). Population based study of hospitalised fall related injuries in older people. Injury Prevention, 8(4), 280–283.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Peel, N.M., McClure, R.J., & Hendrikz, J.K. (2007). Psychosocial factors associated with fall-related hip fractures. Age and Ageing, 36(2), 145–151.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pointer, S., Harrison, J., & Bradley, C. (2003). National Injury Prevention Plan Priorities for 2004 and Beyond. Discussion Paper (Cat. No. INJCAT 55). Adelaide, South Australia: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
Public Health Agency Canada. (2005). Report on seniors’ falls in Canada. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Division of Aging and Seniors.Google Scholar
Reyes-Ortiz, C.A., Al Snih, S., & Markides, K.S. (2005). Falls among elderly persons in Latin America and the Caribbean and among elderly Mexican-Americans. Revista panamericana de salud pública, 17(5–6), 362–369.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rubenstein, L.Z. (2006). Falls in older people: Epidemiology, risk factors and strategies for prevention. Age and Ageing, 35(Suppl. 2), ii37–ii41.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Salkeld, G., Cameron, I.D., Cumming, R.G., Easter, S., Seymour, J., Kurrle, S.E. et al. . (2000). Quality of life related to fear of falling and hip fracture in older women: A time trade off study. BMJ, 320(7231), 341–346.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Salva, A., Bolibar, I., Pera, G., & Arias, C. (2004). Incidence and consequences of falls among elderly people living in the community. Medicina Clínica, 122(5), 172–176.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Scott, V., Pearce, M., & Pengelly, C. (2005). Hospitalizations due to Falls Among Canadians Age 65 and Over. Report on Seniors’ Falls in Canada (Technical report prepared for the Public Health Agency of Canada)Victoria, British Columbia, Canada: Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada.Google Scholar
Scuffham, P., Chaplin, S., & Legood, R. (2003). Incidence and costs of unintentional falls in older people in the United Kingdom. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 57(9), 740–744.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shumway-Cook, A., Ciol, M.A., Hoffman, J., Dudgeon, B.J., Yorkston, K., & Chan, L. (2009). Falls in the Medicare population: Incidence, associated factors, and impact on health care. Physical Therapy, 89(4), 324–332.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Speechley, M., Belfry, S., Borrie, M.J., Bray Jenkyn, K., Crilly, R., Gill, D.P., et al. . (2005). Risk factors for falling among community-dwelling veterans and their caregivers. Canadian Journal on Aging, 24(3), 261–274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stevens, J.A., Corso, P.S., Finkelstein, E.A., & Miller, T.R. (2006). The costs of fatal and non-fatal falls among older adults. Injury Prevention, 12(5), 290–295.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stevens, J.A., Mack, K.A., Paulozzi, L.J., & Ballesteros, M.F. (2008). Self-reported falls and fall-related injuries among persons aged>or=65 years–United States, 2006. Journal of Safety Research, 39(3), 345–349.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stevens, J.A., & Sogolow, E.D. (2005). Gender differences for non-fatal unintentional fall related injuries among older adults. Injury Prevention, 11(2), 115–119.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stolee, P., Poss, J., Cook, R.J., Byrne, K., & Hirdes, J.P. (2009). Risk factors for hip fracture in older home care clients. The Journals of Gerontology. Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 64(3), 403–410.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sugarman, J.R., Connell, F.A., Hansen, A., Helgerson, S.D., Jessup, M.C., & Lee, H. (2002). Hip fracture incidence in nursing home residents and community-dwelling older people, Washington State, 1993-1995. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 50(10), 1638–1643.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thapa, P.B., Brockman, K.G., Gideon, P., Fought, R.L., & Ray, W.A. (1996). Injurious falls in nonambulatory nursing home residents: A comparative study of circumstances, incidence, and risk factors. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 44(3), 273–278.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Todd, C., & Skelton, D.A. (2004). What are the Main Risk Factors for Falls among Older People and What are the Most Effective Interventions to Prevent Falls? (Health Evidence Network Report). Copenhagen, Denmark: WHO Regional Office for Europe.Google Scholar
Tromp, A.M., Pluijm, S.M., Smit, J.H., Deeg, D.J., Bouter, L.M., & Lips, P. (2001). Fall-risk screening test: A prospective study on predictors for falls in community-dwelling elderly. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 54(8), 837–844.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vaapio, S.S., Salminen, M.J., Ojanlatva, A., & Kivela, S.L. (2009). Quality of life as an outcome of fall prevention interventions among the aged: A systematic review. European Journal of Public Health, 19(1), 7–15.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
von Renteln-Kruse, W., & Krause, T. (2007). Incidence of in-hospital falls in geriatric patients before and after the introduction of an interdisciplinary team-based fall-prevention intervention. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wijlhuizen, G.J., Hopman-Rock, M., Knook, D.L., & van der Cammen, T.J. (2006). Automatic registration of falls and other accidents among community dwelling older people: Feasibility and reliability of the telephone inquiry system. International Journal of Injury Control and Safety Promotion, 13(1), 58–60.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
World Health Organization. (2007). WHO Global Report on Falls Prevention in Older Age. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization. Retrieved May 24, 2009, fromhttp://www.who.int/ageing/publications/Falls_prevention7March.pdfGoogle Scholar
Yoshida, S. (2007). A Global Report on Falls Prevention: Epidemiology of Falls. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization. Retrieved January 13, 2010, fromhttp://www.who.int/ageing/projects/1.Epidemiology%20of%20falls%20in%20older%20age.pdfGoogle Scholar
Zecevic, A.A., Salmoni, A.W., Speechley, M., & Vandervoort, A.A. (2006). Defining a fall and reasons for falling: Comparisons among the views of seniors, health care providers, and the research literature. The Gerontologist, 46(3), 367–376.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed