Footwear and Hip Fracture‐related Fails in Older People

Abstract

Objective: To describe features of footwear worn at the time of hip fracture‐related falls. Method: Subjects were 107 persons (mean age 77 years) admitted with a hip fracture‐related fall to a hospital in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia, between February 1995 and February 1996. All subjects resided in private homes or hostels at the time of their fall. An interviewer‐administered questionnaire was used to collect data from participants on foot problems, falls history, and age and use of footwear worn at the time of hip fracture. A standardised approach was used to physically examine features of footwear worn at the time of fracture. Results: Most subjects wore slippers (33 %} or were not wearing any footwear (24%) when they fell and fractured their hip. Among the 79 subjects in footwear, most (70%) fell in footwear they wore every day and 43% of their footwear was less then six moths old. Participants chose to wear their footwear for comfort, not safety. Conclusion: Enthusiasm for developing a ‘;safe shoe’ should be tempered somewhat by the fact that many people who suffer a hip fracture are not wearing shoes at the time they fall.