Abstract
Falls are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in older people who have cognitive impairment. The present study compared the characteristics of community-dwelling patients, with and without previous diagnosis of dementia, hospitalized because of a hip fracture. 1024 consecutive patients >65 years (77.2% women, mean age 82.9 yrs) admitted for fall-related hip fracture to six Spanish hospitals during a 20-month period were included. Sociodemographic data, geriatric assessment and characteristics (location, time and possible cause: intrinsic, extrinsic or combined risk factor) of falls leading to hip fracture were evaluated. A total of 154 (15%) patients had a previous diagnosis of dementia. Analysis showed a greater number of previous falls before admission for hip fracture in demented patients. Moreover, in non-demented patients, we found both a predominance of falls during the day and of extrinsic factors. Some differences were observed, according to the cognitive status of elderly patients suffering a hip fracture due to a fall. A high percentage of dementia patients had suffered repeated falls prior to the fall-related hip fracture.
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