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2023 OCT 14 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Obesity, Fitness & Wellness Week -- Current study results on geriatrics and gerontology have been published. According to [...]

2023 JUN 17 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Obesity, Fitness & Wellness Week -- New study results on geriatrics and gerontology have been published. According to [...]

2022 NOV 5 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Obesity, Fitness & Wellness Week -- Current study results on Obesity, Fitness and Wellness have been published. According [...]

Feeling unsteady from time to time? We naturally get a bit more wobbly as we get older, putting us at risk of falling and being injured as a result, but [...]

HIP FRACTURES IN THE elderly have been recognized as a major public health problem in Europe and the whole Western world. The projections indicate the number of hip fractures occurring [...], * Chronic illnesses, for which many patients are admitted to hospitals, substantially increase the risk of falling, and hence the likelihood of incurring a hip fracture. * Hip fractures not only have devastating consequences on an individual's quality of life but may also affect a hospital's reputation in the community. * In addition, hospitals may face litigation claims and increased costs for patients who fall and suffer a major injury as a consequence. * External hip protectors are comparable to padded undergarments and shield the trochanter, reducing the detrimental effects and force impacting the bone during a fall. * Screening for patients at high risk of falling and providing high-risk patients with hip protectors as a preventive measure to avoid hip fractures, not only improves public health, but can also save hospitals care and litigation costs.

A fall is described as a sudden, unintentional, downward movement of the body to the ground or other surface; when a patient falls, he or she is at risk of [...], A toileting-related fall was associated with history of a previous fall, use of physical restraints, and risk for falling in hospital settings' This study provided insights to be used to prioritize patient fall prevention strategies!

Falls and fall-related injuries are common among older adults and can have devastating health outcomes. Each year, one out of every three adults 65 years of age and older fall [...]

Parkinson disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease that presents a constellation of systemic motor and non-motor signs and symptoms. Postural instability, one of the most disabling cardinal signs of PD, [...], Background. Gait impairments, balance impairments, and falls are prevalent in individuals with Parkinson disease (PD). Although the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) can be considered the reference standard for the determination of fall risk, it has a noted ceiling effect. Development of ceiling-free measures that can assess balance and arc good at discriminating 'fallers' from 'nonfallers' is needed. Objective. The purpose of this study was to compare the Functional Gait Assessment (FGA) and the Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest) with the BBS among individuals with PD and evaluate the tests' reliability, validity, and discriminatory sensitivity and specificity for fallers versus nonfallers. Design. This was an observational study of community-dwelling individuals with idiopathic PD. Methods. The BBS, FGA, and BESTest were administered to 80 individuals with PD. Interrater reliability (n = 15) was assessed by 3 raters. Test-retest reliability was based on 2 tests of participants (n= 24), 2 weeks apart. Intraclass correlation coefficients (2,1) were used to calculate reliability, and Spearman correlation coefficients were used to assess validity. Cutoff points, sensitivity, and specificity were based on receiver operating characteristic plots. Results. Test-retest reliability was .80 for the BBS, .91 for the FGA, and .88 for the BESTest. Interrater reliability was greater than .93 for all 3 tests. The FGA and BESTest were correlated with the BBS (r=.78 and r=.87, respectively). Cutoff scores to identify fallers were 47/56 for the BBS, 15/30 for the FGA, and 69% for the BESTest. The overall accuracy (area under the curve) for the BBS, FGA, and BESTest was .79, .80, and .85, respectively. Limitations. Fall reports were retrospective. Conclusion. Both the FGA and the BESTest have reliability and validity for assessing balance in individuals with PD. The BESTcst is most sensitive for identifying fallers.

INTRODUCTION The incidence of low-impact pelvic fractures is rising and continues to be a health burden to the elderly. (1-3) The emergency management of pelvic fractures predominantly focuses on the [...], Objective: We examined the records of patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with low-impact pelvic fractures. We describe frequency, demographics, management and patient outcomes in terms of ambulatory ability, living independence and mortality. Methods: Patients treated for a pelvic fracture over a 2-year period in Kingston, Ont., were identified. We performed a retrospective hospital record review to distinguish high- versus low-impact injury mechanisms, and to characterize the injury event, ED management and outcomes for patients with low-impact fractures. Results: Of 132 pelvic fractures identified, 77 were low-impact fractures. Patients were predominantly women (82%) with a mean age of 81 years; 96% had some pre-existing medical comorbidity. The pubic rami were most commonly involved (86%). The median length of stay in the ED was 9.4 hours. Twenty-five patients (32%) were admitted to hospital. Ten patients had surgical stabilization, mostly of the acetabulum. Five patients died in hospital, 4 from pneumonia and 1 from myocardial infarction. Eight additional patients died within 1 year of injury. At discharge, only 18% lived independently and 16% walked without aids versus 42% and 38%, respectively, before injury. Conclusion: Low-impact pelvic fractures affect predominantly elderly women with pre-existing comorbidities. A substantial amount of time and resources in the ED are used during the workup of these patients and while awaiting their disposition from the ED. These injuries are important because they affect independence and seem associated with an increased risk of death. Keywords: pelvic fracture, low-impact trauma, outcomes, falls in elderly, morbidity, mortality Objectif : Nous avons analyse les dossiers de patients s'etant presentes a l'urgence avec une fracture du bassin a faible impact. Nous decrivons la frequence, les donnees demographiques, la prise en charge et le devenir des patients en termes de capacite ambulatoire, d'autonomie et de mortalite. Methodes : Nous avons repere les patients traites pour une fracture du bassin sur une periode de 2 ans a Kingston, en Ontario. Nous avons effectue une analyse retrospective des dossiers medicaux pour faire la distinction entre les mecanismes de blessure a faible impact et a haut impact et caracteriser l'incident a l'origine de la fracture, la prise en charge a l'urgence et le devenir des patients presentant une fracture a faible impact. Resultats : Parmi les 132 fractures du bassin reperees, 77 etaient des fractures a faible impact. Les patients etaient majoritairement des femmes (82 %) et l'age moyen, de 81 ans; 96 % avaient une comorbidite medicale preexistante. Les branches pubiennes etaient le foyer de fracture le plus courant (86 %). La duree mediane de sejour a l'urgence etait de 9,4 heures. Vingt-cinq patients (32 %) ont ete hospitalises. Dix patients ont subi une stabilisation chirurgicale, principalement de l'acetabulum. Cinq patients sont decedes a l'hopital, 4 d'une pneumonie et 1 d'un infarctus du myocarde. Huit autres patients sont decedes dans l'annee suivant la blessure. A la sortie de l'hopital, seulement 18 % des patients vivaient de facon autonome et 16 % marchaient sans aide par rapport a 42 % et 38 %, respectivement, avant le traumatisme. Conclusion : Les fractures du bassin a faible impact touchent principalement les femmes agees presentant des comorbidites preexistantes. On consacre beaucoup de temps et de ressources a l'urgence pour l'investigation et dans l'attente de l'issue de la consultation. Ces blessures sont importantes, car elles affectent l'autonomie et semblent etre associees a un risque accru de deces.

To authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2009.02137.x Keywords: frailty; older men; hip fracture; mortality Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To compare the validity of a parsimonious frailty index (components: weight loss, inability to rise from a chair, and poor energy (Study of Osteoporotic Fractures (SOF) index)) with that of the more complex Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) index (components: unintentional weight loss, low grip strength, poor energy, slowness, and low physical activity) for prediction of adverse outcomes in older men. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Six U.S. centers. PARTICIPANTS: Three thousand one hundred thirty-two men aged 67 and older. MEASUREMENTS: Frailty status categorized as robust, intermediate stage, or frail using the SOF index and criteria similar to those used in CHS index. Falls were reported three times for 1 year. Disability ([greater than or equal to]1 new impairments in performing instrumental activities of daily living) ascertained at 1 year. Fractures and deaths ascertained during 3 years of follow-up. Analysis of area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) statistics compared for models containing the SOF index versus those containing the CHS index. RESULTS: Greater evidence of frailty as defined by either index was associated with greater risk of adverse outcomes. Frail men had a higher age-adjusted risk of recurrent falls (odds ratio (OR)=3.0-3.6), disability (OR=5.3-7.5), nonspine fracture (hazard ratio (HR)=2.2-2.3), and death (HR=2.5-3.5) (P CONCLUSION: The simple SOF index predicts risk of falls, disability, fracture, and mortality in men as well as the more-complex CHS index. Author Affiliation: (*)Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota ([dagger])Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota ([double dagger])Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California (s.)Research Institute, California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, California ([parallel])Department of Epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (#)Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, California (**)Bone and Mineral Unit, Department of Medicine; and ([dagger][dagger])Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, Oregon. Article note: Address correspondence to Kristine E. Ensrud, VA Medical Center, One Veterans Drive, General Internal Medicine (111-0), Minneapolis, MN 55417. E-mail: ensru001@umn.edu