title: Risk factors for falls in people with and without a diagnose of dementia living in residential care facilities: a prospective study.
abstract: People with dementia are at increased risk of falling. The purpose of this study was to identify predisposing risk factors for falls in older people with and without a diagnose of dementia living in residential care facilities, and to compare the results. Eighty-three residents without dementia (mean age+/-S.D.; 83.5+/-7.1 years) and 103 with dementia (83.6+/-6.3 years) in Umeå, Sweden, participated. The baseline assessment included probable risk factors like walking ability, diagnoses and treatment with drugs. The follow-up period was 6 months. In people with dementia, the fall rate was higher (crude incidence rate ratio 2.55, 95% CI 1.60-4.08) and a larger proportion experienced falls (62% versus 41%). In the group without dementia 54.8% of the variation in falls was explained by a model including orthostatism, "women walking with aid", and treatment with Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. In the group with dementia 25.5% of the variation in falls was explained by a model including "man walking with aid". Our results show that with the same set of common risk factors for falls a considerably lower proportion of the variation in falls can be explained in the group of people with dementia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Physiotherapy, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden. staffan.eriksson@germed.umu.se
authors.forename: Staffan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.forename: Yngve
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gustafson
authors.forename: Lillemor
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lundin-Olsson
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003704:Dementia / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly / Q000523:psychology*; D005684:Gait / Q000187:drug effects*; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D004856:Postural Balance; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012112:Residential Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology