Effect of pain on fear of falling in patients with femoral proximal fracture.
Hironobu Kakihana, Masaya Koeda, Masashi Kasahara and 1 others
PMID 29200646WHAT IT FOUND
Four weeks after surgery for femoral proximal fracture, age and higher pain intensity were linked to lower confidence about avoiding falls.
Walking, balance and daily independence did not differ across confidence groups, so pain is worth asking about.
Key findings
01Four weeks after surgery for femoral proximal fracture, age and pain intensity were associated with fall self-efficacy.
02The low fall self-efficacy group had median pain on movement of 27 mm, and the high fall self-efficacy group had median pain of 0 mm.
03Daily independence, walking speed and balance did not differ significantly among the low, medium and high fall self-efficacy groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study included 26 patients at one facility, so the findings may not apply to other hospitals or populations. People with suspected dementia, suspected depression, or limited walking before injury were excluded, so the results do not cover patients with those conditions or greater walking dependence. Participants were divided into groups after their fall self-efficacy score, so the study did not assign people to groups. The written group comparison and participant table disagree about age between the low and high confidence groups.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that treating pain will reduce fear of falling. The study measured pain and fall confidence at four weeks after surgery in 26 patients at one facility, and it did not test a pain treatment.