Evaluation of fall presentations in patients over 65 years of age admitted to the emergency department of a hospital in Türkiye

Abstract

Introduction:Falls Falls are a major cause of mobility and mortality among older adults. Regional monitoring and analysis of the risks and outcomes associated with falls are important for developing preventive approaches. Materials and Method: This cross-sectional analysis retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records of older adults (aged >= 65 years) who presented to the emergency department of a university hospital in Izmir, Turkey between January 2019 and January 2020. Information regarding pre-fall, fall-related, and post-fall treatments was analyzed. Results: Over one year, 2,037 older patients (68.4% [n=1,349] women, with a mean age of 80.65+7.50 years) presented to the emergency department because of falls. Unfortunately, many important pieces of fall-related data were not routinely recorded at the institution. According to the available records, the majority of the patients were physically active (84.4%), lived independently (53.6%), and most frequently fell as a result of tripping or stumbling (88.1%). Of the patients, 74.9% were discharged; however, no information was available regarding whether they were informed about fall prevention before discharge. Head trauma was the most common cause of admission (n=415), and hip fractures were the leading surgical causes (n=175). The presence of chronic disease (p=0.910), age (p=0.274), and sex (p=0.304) did not affect the risk of fractures after falling. Conclusion: Fall prevention is a more feasible and efficacious strategy than addressing the resultant complications. The current practice of analyzing the fall risks of individuals who present to emergency departmentwith falls and directing them to preventive programs is insufficient to address this issue.