TY - JOUR
T1 - Preoperative falls and their association with functional dependence and quality of life
AU - Kronzer, Vanessa L.
AU - Tang, Rose D.
AU - Schelble, Allison P.
AU - Ben Abdallah, Arbi
AU - Wildes, Troy S.
AU - Mckinnon, Sherry L.
AU - Sadiq, Furqaan
AU - Lin, Nan
AU - Helsten, Daniel L.
AU - Sharma, Anshuman
AU - Stark, Susan L.
AU - Avidan, Michael S.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, Inc. Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.
PY - 2016/8/1
Y1 - 2016/8/1
N2 - Background: No study has rigorously explored the characteristics of surgical patients with recent preoperative falls. Our objective was to describe the essential features of preoperative falls and determine whether they are associated with preoperative functional dependence and poor quality of life. Methods: This was an observational study involving 15,060 surveys from adult patients undergoing elective surgery. The surveys were collected between January 2014 and August 2015, with a response rate of 92%. Results: In the 6 months before surgery, 26% (99% CI, 25 to 27%) of patients fell at least once, and 12% (99% CI, 11 to 13%) fell at least twice. The proportion of patients who fell was highest among patients presenting for neurosurgery (41%; 99% CI, 36 to 45%). At least one fall-related injury occurred in 58% (99% CI, 56 to 60%) of those who fell. Falls were common in all age groups, but surprisingly, they did not increase monotonically with age. Middle-aged patients (45 to 64 yr) had the highest proportion of fallers (28%), recurrent fallers (13%), and severe fall-related injuries (27%) compared to younger (18 to 44 yr) and older (65+ yr) patients (P < 0.001 for each). A fall within 6 months was independently associated with preoperative functional dependence (odds ratio, 1.94; 99% CI, 1.68 to 2.24) and poor physical quality of life (odds ratio, 2.18; 99% CI, 1.88 to 2.52). Conclusions: Preoperative falls might be common and are possibly often injurious in the presurgical population, across all ages. A history of falls could enhance the assessment of preoperative functional dependence and quality of life.
AB - Background: No study has rigorously explored the characteristics of surgical patients with recent preoperative falls. Our objective was to describe the essential features of preoperative falls and determine whether they are associated with preoperative functional dependence and poor quality of life. Methods: This was an observational study involving 15,060 surveys from adult patients undergoing elective surgery. The surveys were collected between January 2014 and August 2015, with a response rate of 92%. Results: In the 6 months before surgery, 26% (99% CI, 25 to 27%) of patients fell at least once, and 12% (99% CI, 11 to 13%) fell at least twice. The proportion of patients who fell was highest among patients presenting for neurosurgery (41%; 99% CI, 36 to 45%). At least one fall-related injury occurred in 58% (99% CI, 56 to 60%) of those who fell. Falls were common in all age groups, but surprisingly, they did not increase monotonically with age. Middle-aged patients (45 to 64 yr) had the highest proportion of fallers (28%), recurrent fallers (13%), and severe fall-related injuries (27%) compared to younger (18 to 44 yr) and older (65+ yr) patients (P < 0.001 for each). A fall within 6 months was independently associated with preoperative functional dependence (odds ratio, 1.94; 99% CI, 1.68 to 2.24) and poor physical quality of life (odds ratio, 2.18; 99% CI, 1.88 to 2.52). Conclusions: Preoperative falls might be common and are possibly often injurious in the presurgical population, across all ages. A history of falls could enhance the assessment of preoperative functional dependence and quality of life.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84976580260&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1097/ALN.0000000000001167
DO - 10.1097/ALN.0000000000001167
M3 - Article
C2 - 27362869
AN - SCOPUS:84976580260
SN - 0003-3022
VL - 125
SP - 322
EP - 332
JO - Anesthesiology
JF - Anesthesiology
IS - 2
ER -