Risk of falls in hospitalized elderly people

Cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, carried out at University Hospital of the State of Paraíba. The sample consisted of 284 elderly subjects interviewed from April to October 2016. The Morse Fall Scale was used to evaluate the risk of falls.

RESULTS

Elderly males (52.5%) aged between 60 and 69 years old (58.1%) and who were not literate (38.7%), prevailed. It was verified that 45% of the sample presented a high risk of falls. The secondary diagnosis and the use of intravenous therapy were the criteria that obtained a higher percentage of elderly at risk. Diuretics (p≤0.032), urinary incontinence (p≤0.001), visual deficit (p≤0.001) and heart failure (p≤0.001) were significantly associated with the high risk of falls.

CONCLUSION

The use of specific tools in the prevention of falls allows the improvement in the quality of assistance based on scientific evidence, allowing effective intervention and potentiating patient safety.

Keywords:
Patient safety; Aged; Accidental falls; Hospitalization

RISK	SURGICAL		CUA*		CUB**		IPD***		GENERAL
RISK	n	%	n	%	n	%	n	%	n	%
Low	35	29.4	9	13.6	8	10.5	5	21.7	57	20.1
Moderate	40	33.6	27	40.9	24	31.6	8	34.8	99	34.9
High	44	37.0	30	45.5	44	57.9	10	43.5	128	45.0
Total	119	41.9	66	23.2	76	26.8	23	8.1	284	100.0

Morse Scale Items	N	%
History of Falls
No	151	53.2
Yes	133	46.8
Secondary Diagnosis
No	56	19.7
Yes	228	80.3
Aid in walking
None/Bedridden/Helped by Health Professional;	244	85.9
Crutches/Walking stick/Walker	27	9.5
Furniture/Wall	13	5.6
Endovenous therapy/salinized or heparinized endovenous device
No	93	32.7
Yes	191	67.3
March
Normal/Not walking, Bedridden, Wheelchair.	191	67.2
Weak	63	22.2
Committed/Wavering	30	10.6
Mental State
Oriented/able as to its capacity/limitation	270	95.1
Overestimate Capacity/Forget Limitations	14	4.9

Variables	Categories	Risk of falls			p
Variables	Categories	Low	Moderate	High	p
Gender	Female	27 (9.5)	38 (13.4)	70 (24.6)	0.050
Gender	Male	30 (10.5)	61 (21.5)	58 (20.4)	0.050
Age	60 to 69	46 (16.2)	63 (22.2)	56 (19.7)	< 0.001
	70 to 79	9 (3.2)	26 (9.2)	57 (20.1)
	80 to 89	2 (0.7)	10 (3.5)	15 (5.3)
Color and Race	Caucasian	21 (7.4)	35 (12.3)	47 (16.5)	0.957
	Black	10 (3.5)	18 (6.3)	27 (9.5)
	Brown-skinned	26 (9.2)	46 (16.2)	54 (19.0)
Marital status	Married/Stable union	32 (11.3)	61 (21.5)	72 (25.4)	0.165
	Widow/widower	10 (3.5)	21 (7.4)	34 (12.0)
	Single	3 (1.1)	6 (2.1)	12 (4.2)
	Separated/Divorced	12 (4.2)	11 (3.9)	10 (3.5)
Attended school	Yes	41 (14.4)	64 (22.5)	69 (24.3)	0.047
Attended school	No	16 (5.6)	35 (12.3)	59 (20.8)	0.047
MMSE Classification	Illiterate	2 (0.7)	8 (2.8)	27 (9.5)	0.001
	1 to 4 years	25 (8.8)	59 (20.8)	65 (22.9)
	5 to 8 years	27 (9.5)	30 (10.6)	30 (10.6)
	9 or more years	3 (1.1)	2 (0.7)	6 (2.1)
Religion	Catholic	41 (14.4)	73 (25.7)	93 (32.7)	0.997
	Evangelical	14 (4.9)	23 (8.1)	30 (10.6)
	Others	2 (0.7)	3 (1.1)	5 (1.8)

		Risk of falls n (%)			p
		Low	Moderate		High
Tranquilizer / Sedative	Yes	5 (1.8)	9 (3.2)	20 (7.0)	0.122
Tranquilizer / Sedative	No	52 (18.3)	90 (31.7)	108 (38.0)	0.122
Diuretic	Yes	12 (4.2)	32 (11.3)	48 (16.9)	0.032
Diuretic	No	45 (15.8)	67 (23.6)	80 (28.2)	0.032
Antihypertensive	Yes	33 (11.6)	61 (21.5)	83 (29.2)	0.360
Antihypertensive	No	24 (8.5)	38 (13.4)	45 (15.8)	0.360
Antiparkinsonian	Yes	0 (0.0)	1 (0.4)	1 (0.4)	0.644
Antiparkinsonian	No	57 (20.1)	98 (34.5)	127 (44.7)	0.644
Antidepressant	Yes	8 (2.8)	8 (2.8)	17 (6.0)	0.857
Antidepressant	No	49 (17.3)	91 (32.0)	111 (39.1)	0.857
Urinary incontinence	Yes	12 (4.2)	24 (8.5)	60 (21.1)	< 0.001
Urinary incontinence	No	45 (15.8)	75 (26.4)	68 (23.9)	< 0.001
Hearing loss	Yes	2 (0.7)	6 (2.1)	5 (1.8)	0.926
Hearing loss	No	55 (19.4)	93 (32.7)	123 (43.3)	0.926
Visual deficit	Yes	22 (7.7)	47 (16.5)	88 (31.0)	< 0.001
Visual deficit	No	35 (12.3)	52 (18.3)	40 (14.1)	< 0.001
Musculoskeletal Problems	Yes	18 (6.3)	27 (9.5)	52 (18.3)	0.113
Musculoskeletal Problems	No	39 (13.7)	72 (25.4)	76 (26.8)	0.113
Heart failure	Yes	6 (2.1)	21 (7.4)	46 (16.2)	< 0.001
Heart failure	No	51 (18.0)	78 (27.5)	82 (28.9)	< 0.001
Labyrinthitis	Yes	14 (4.9)	21 (7.4)	42 (14.8)	0.129
Labyrinthitis	No	43 (15.1)	78 (27.5)	86 (30.3)	0.129
Hypertension	Yes	32 (11.3)	62 (21.8)	95 (33.5)	0.104
Hypertension	No	25 (8.8)	37 (13.0)	33 (11.6)	0.104
Diabetes	Yes	15 (5.3)	42 (14.8)	51 (18.0)	0.152
Diabetes	No	42 (14.8)	57 (20.1)	77 (27.1)	0.152

Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. Escola de Enfermagem Rua São Manoel, 963 -Campus da Saúde , 90.620-110 - Porto Alegre - RS - Brasil, Fone: (55 51) 3308-5242 / Fax: (55 51) 3308-5436 - Porto Alegre - RS - Brazil
E-mail: revista@enf.ufrgs.br

Acompanhe os números deste periódico no seu leitor de RSS

[1] Corresponding author:
Renata Maia de Medeiros Falcão. renata__maia@hotmail.com