FRIDAY, July 10, 2020 (HealthDay News) — In 2018, 27.5 percent of older adults reported falling at least once in the previous year, with 10.2 percent reporting an injury from a fall, according to research published in the July 10 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Briana Moreland, M.P.H., from Synergy America Inc. in Atlanta, and colleagues present the percentages and rates of nonfatal falls by age group and demographic characteristics using data from the 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; data were compared to those from 2012, 2014, and 2016.
The researchers found that 27.5 and 10.2 percent of older adults (aged ≥65 years) reported falling at least once in the previous year and reported an injury from a fall in the previous year, respectively, in 2018. From 2012 to 2016, there was an increase in the percentage of older adults reporting a fall, and a slight decrease was seen between 2016 and 2018.
“As the proportion of older adults living in the United States continues to grow, so too will the number of falls and fall-related injuries,” the authors write. “However, many of these falls are preventable. To help keep older adults living independently and injury-free, reducing fall risk and fall-related injuries is essential.”
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