title: Health care and socioeconomic impact of falls in the elderly.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Elderly falls are associated with long hospital stays, major morbidity, and mortality. We sought to examine the fate of patients ≥75 years of age admitted after falls.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed all fall admissions in 2008. Causes, comorbidities, injuries, procedures, mortality, readmission, and costs were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seven hundred eight patients ≥75 years old were admitted after a fall, with 89% being simple falls. Short-term mortality was 6%. Male sex, atrial fibrillation, acute myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure (CHF), intracranial hemorrhage, hospital-acquired pneumonia, trigger events, Clostridium difficile, and intubation were predictors of death (P < .05). Thirty-day readmission occurred in 14%; CHF, craniotomy, and acute renal failure were predictive. The median cost of hospitalization was $11,000 with cardiac disease, anemia, major orthopedic and neurosurgical procedures, pneumonia, and intubation as predictive.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Simple falls in the elderly have high morbidity, mortality, and costs. Methodologies for prevention are warranted and should be studied intensively.
authors.affiliation: Division of Acute Care Surgery, Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA. jsiracus@bidmc.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Jeffrey J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Siracuse
authors.forename: David D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Odell
authors.forename: Stephen P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Gondek
authors.forename: Stephen R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Odom
authors.forename: Ekkehard M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Kasper
authors.forename: Carl J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hauser
authors.forename: Donald W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Moorman
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000191:economics / Q000401:mortality / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017721:Hospital Costs; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010359:Patient Readmission / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014193:Trauma Centers / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*