Differing trends in fall-related fracture and non-fracture injuries in older people with and without dementia

Falls among older people are a major public health issue which places considerable burden on healthcare systems globally. Around one in three adults aged 65 years and over fall each year and one in ten of these falls will require admission to hospital (NSW Ministry of Health, 2010; Tinetti, Speechley, & Ginter, 1988). In 2013 the direct medical costs for falls in the United States was estimated to total $34 billion (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). Fall-related hospitalisations are increasing in the United States (Hartholt, Stevens, Polinder, van der Cammen, & Patka, 2011) and elsewhere (Australian Insitutute of Health and Welfare, 2015), although over the last decade there have been differential trends within the type of fall-related injuries sustained.

Source: Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics - July 3, 2016 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Lara Harvey, Rebecca Mitchell, Henry Brodaty, Brian Draper, Jacqueline Close Source Type: research