Fall Detection and Prevention for the Elderly: A Review of Trends and Challenges

Abstract

Abstract-It is of little surprise that falling is often accepted as a natural part of the aging process. In fact, it is the impact rather than the occurrence of falls in the elderly, which is of most concern. Aging people are typically frailer, more unsteady, and have slower reactions, thus are more likely to fall and be injured than younger individuals. Typically, research and industry presented various practical solutions for assisting the elderly and their caregivers against falls via detecting falls and triggering notification alarms calling for help as soon as falls occur in order to diminish fall consequences.

Communication Needs of Elderly at Risk of Falls and their Remote Family

“…El-Bendary and colleagues [12] have reviewed academic work on fall detection technologies between 2003 and 2013. They identified a range of fall monitoring systems from video surveillance and sensor networks, to mobile technologies.…”

“…Data analysis consisted of a hybrid approach where existing concepts such as dimensions of connectedness [38], autonomy and peace of mind [27] were used for the deductive coding, while new concepts grounded on the empirical data contributed to the inductive coding [12]. The codes were iteratively refined as new codes emerged under the themes of family's anxiety, elderly's conflicting needs for autonomy and privacy on the one hand, and safety on the other hand, and special communication needs derived from these.…”

Introduction

“…Simple activities such as "sleeping" and "walking" have an effect on not only vital signs such as heart rate and blood pressure, but also on any measure of activity and mobility that is being used. With BSNs, adverse event such as falls in elderlies can be detected along with users' location so assistance can be provided in a timely manner [122]. Long-term monitoring of emotional status [123] has led to several promising applications, particularly those that involves mental disabilities.…”

A Panoramic Study of Fall Detection Technologies

“…In this age group, falling is the most common ones of life threatening events that can occur, which is leading to a high incidence of impairments to the health and lifestyle of elderly people. In particular, falls not only a health problem, causing accidental death or physical injury such as hip fractures, but also a social and psychological issue in that it may cause people who have experienced fall previously, fear another fall and drown into inactivity and social isolation [2] [3]. Furthermore, when elderly helplessly fall without getting any prompt assistance and help, thus that will brings out large medical care costs.…”