Have you ever noticed how much seniors have in common small children? From eating habits to sleep, dependency on others to falls and fractures; there seems to be a huge similarity between a child of six and senior of sixty.
Falls and resultant fractures are a common feature of aging, and statistics confirm this sad fact. Almost 300,000 seniors over age of 65 years suffer from hip fractures each year, and to make matters worse 33 % of these folks may die within a year of the episode.
Causes:
The reason for increased incidence of falls and fractures in elderly could be numerous. But in the absence of other disease conditions, weakness of bones and joints due to calcium depletion could be cited as the most common reason. Other reasons are listed here:
- Disturbances in vision
- Vertigo due to any cause
- Disorders of blood pressure (high / low)
- Arthritis.
- Hypoglycemia.
- Environmental reasons like inadequate lighting, wet floors, slippery bathroom tiles, incorrect height of beds etc
- Incorrect use of walking aids.
- Parkinson’s disease, Multiple sclerosis, spinal cord tumors etc which lead to an imbalance in gait.
- Side effects of certain medications.
Prevention:
Prevention is better than cure, especially when it comes to falls and fractures. Simple measures which can prevent incidence of falls and consequent fractures in elderly are described here:
- Ensure adequate calcium intake in your diet and also via calcium supplements.
- Keep a regular tab on your health and make it a routine to get vision, blood sugar, blood pressure etc checked at periodic intervals.
- In case your medications have vertigo or gait imbalance listed as side effects, talk with your physician about better alternatives to these drugs.
- Make your home and surroundings fall-proof by making some effective adjustments. Modify the lighting to provide proper amount of light, install hand bars and provisions that help to take bath sitting, removing all slippery rugs and obstacles from home and bath, using a commode at night instead of traveling to the toilet etc.
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