Cognitive impairment, dementia and prevalence of falls in a rural elderly population

Journal article

Prevalence of falls and their association with cognitive impairment and dementia were assessed in an Italian rural elderly (>64 years) population. All subjects were interviewed in their own homes by means of a twophase design. Cognitive impairment and dementia were diagnosed according to the DSM IV criteria. Of the 968 interviewed subjects, 116 (12.0%) reported at least one fall in the previous year; 41.4% of this group reported that they had fallen at least twice. Falls occurred more frequently (p<0.01) in women (14.6%) than in men (8.6%) and they increased significantly with age in men (p<0.01). The prevalence of falls was significantly higher in demented (23.1 %, pO.OOl ) and cognitively impaired patients (16.3%, pO.OOl) than in normal subjects (7.7%). After adjustment for age and sex, the odds ratios for falls were 2.1 (95% CI, 1.4 to 3.0) in demented patients and 2.2 (95% CI, 1.4 to 3.4) in cognitively impaired patients.

Authors: Casini, A; Ferretti, C; Santini, M; Pezzella, F; Prencipe, M

• Journal: Italian Journal of Neurological Sciences
• Volume: 18
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 65-65
• Publication date: 1997-01-01
• ISSN: 0392-0461
• Language: English