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Alcohol as a Risk Factor for Fall Injury Events among Elderly Persons Living in the Community
Author(s) -
Nelson David E.,
Sattin Richard W.,
Langlois Jean A.,
DeVito Carolee A.,
Stevens Judy A.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1992.tb01955.x
Subject(s) - medicine , injury prevention , occupational safety and health , poison control , suicide prevention , human factors and ergonomics , risk factor , gerontology , miami , environmental health , medical emergency , soil science , environmental science , pathology
Objective To determine if alcohol use is a risk factor for fall injury events among community‐dwelling older persons. Design Case‐control study. Setting South Miami Beach, Florida. Participants 320 persons 65 or older who sought treatment at six area hospitals for injuries resulting from falls; 609 controls, matched for sex and age, selected randomly from Health Care Financing Administration (Medicare) files. Main Independent Variables Self‐reported current alcohol use. Results No association was found between fall injury events and average weekly alcohol use. Conclusions Further efforts at reducing injuries to older persons from falls should concentrate on other modifiable risk factors, including adequate treatment of underlying medical conditions, reducing inappropriate psychotropic medication use, and installing safety devices in the home.