Dataset Information
Effectiveness of preventive home visits in reducing the risk of falls in old age: a randomized controlled trial.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Background
Falls in older people are a major public health issue, but the underlying causes are complex. We sought to evaluate the effectiveness of preventive home visits as a multifactorial, individualized strategy to reduce falls in community-dwelling older people.Methods
Data were derived from a prospective randomized controlled trial with follow-up examination after 18 months. Two hundred and thirty participants (≥80 years of age) with functional impairment were randomized to intervention and control groups. The intervention group received up to three preventive home visits including risk assessment, home counseling intervention, and a booster session. The control group received no preventive home visits. Structured interviews at baseline and follow-up provided information concerning falls in both study groups. Random-effects Poisson regression evaluated the effect of preventive home visits on the number of falls controlling for covariates.Results
Random-effects Poisson regression showed a significant increase in the number of falls between baseline and follow-up in the control group (incidence rate ratio 1.96) and a significant decrease in the intervention group (incidence rate ratio 0.63) controlling for age, sex, family status, level of care, and impairment in activities of daily living.Conclusion
Our results indicate that a preventive home visiting program can be effective in reducing falls in community-dwelling older people.
SUBMITTER: Luck T
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3684143 | biostudies-literature | 2013
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Effectiveness of preventive home visits in reducing the risk of falls in old age: a randomized controlled trial.
Clinical interventions in aging 20130612
<h4>Background</h4>Falls in older people are a major public health issue, but the underlying causes are complex. We sought to evaluate the effectiveness of preventive home visits as a multifactorial, individualized strategy to reduce falls in community-dwelling older people.<h4>Methods</h4>Data were derived from a prospective randomized controlled trial with follow-up examination after 18 months. Two hundred and thirty participants (≥80 years of age) with functional impairment were randomized to ...[more]