Investigation and analysis of high risk factors of falls in hospitalised patients after vascular surgery.
Yuan Bai, Xiao-Hong Zhang, Fang He and 3 others
PMID 37612835WHAT IT FOUND
Hospitalised vascular surgery patients who fell were more often over 65, had prior falls, fractures, osteoporosis, or long-term medication.
These factors appeared independently associated with falls, but the study was small and retrospective.
Key findings
01Compared with matched controls, patients who fell were more often over 65, had a fall history, had a fracture history, took medication for more than 3 months, and had osteoporosis.
02Multivariate logistic regression reported age 65 years old, fall history, fracture history, continuous medication for more than 3 months, and osteoporosis as independent risk factors, with odds ratios 1.334, 1.324, 1.342, 1.339, and 1.383.
03Male sex and family accompaniment did not differ significantly between the fall and control groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Retrospective small-sample study from five hospitals in Shanxi Province; the authors note possible selection bias. Only inpatient fall events were examined, with no long-term home-based follow-up. Controls were matched by gender only. The sample excluded patients with preoperative fall risk, severe cognitive impairment, communication difficulties, severe co-morbidity, bed-bound status, and missing data, so results may not apply to those groups.
Declared interests
Funded by the Shanxi Province 136 Revitalization Medical Project Construction Funds. All authors declared no personal, financial, commercial, or academic conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat these factors as proven causes of falls or as evidence that specific fall prevention measures work. The study was retrospective, included only 56 patients with falls and 56 controls, and did not test interventions.