Prevalence of Fall and Associated Risk Factors Among Older Adults in Thailand

Abstract

Generally, older adults are highly at risk of falls resulting in severe injuries such as fractured bones or death. Injury from falls amongst the elderly is widely accepted as a critical health problem. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and health correlations of falls in a rural population-based community-dwelling sample of older people in Maha Sarakham. A cross-sectional study was carried out in 10 sub-districts of Maha Sarakham, and 1,519 people aged > 50 years were systematically randomly selected. The sample provided information about sociodemographic and various health variables, including falling down history in last year. Overall, 12.1% had one or more falls in the past year; 15.5% of women and 8.7% of men. In a binary logistic regression model, having two or more chronic conditions (Adj. OR=2.08, 95%CI=1.3, 3.33, p-value=0.002), a vision problem (Adj. OR=1.85, 95%CI=1.20, 2.84, p-value=0.005), and sleep impairment (Adj. OR=1.56, 95%CI=1.03, 2.37, p-value=0.034) were potential risk factors of having fallen during the past year. This study highlights several older people with fall risk in rural areas of Maha Sarakham. Several risk factors were identified that could help in designing fall-prevention strategies. The health care providers at primary care units in Maha Sarakham’s rural areas should be aware of health promotion for fall prevention, and there needs to be more concern about a routine screening of falls in the older adult population.

Therapeutic Exercises in Fall Prevention among Older Adults

“…Older adults are often at risk of falls resulting in severe injuries or even death. Injury from falls in the aging adult population has become widely accepted as a critical health problem [27].…”