Falls reported among elderly Norwegians living at home

• Published in: Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy 1998-08, Vol.3 (3), p.164-174
• Main Authors: Bergland, Astrid, Pettersen, Anne Marie, Laake, Knut
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accidental Falls - statistics & numerical data; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; elderly; falls; Female; Humans; Incidence; injury; Male; Norway - epidemiology
• ISSN: 1358-2267; 1471-2865
• DOI: 10.1002/pri.138

Background and Purpose Norway has the highest reported incidence of hip fractures in western Europe. Little is known about the epidemiology of falls in Norway where the winter season is long and dark. The objective of this work was to study reported falls and their consequences among elderly Norwegians living at home. Methods A cross‐sectional design was used for the study. Interviews were performed in the homes of 431 subjects, aged 67–97 years, living at home. Information on falling was gathered through six questions: whether the subject had fallen during the last six months, and if so, how many falls they had, where the last fall occurred, its perceived reason, the activity the subject had been engaged in when the fall occurred, and the resulting injury. Results In all, 24.1% of subjects reported falling during the last six months, and 9.5% had suffered more than one fall. Falls were most frequently linked to external events (63.1%). Outdoor falls were more frequent (59.0%; 95% CI=51.2–82.0) than indoor falls. Older subjects were associated with more frequent indoor falls (p