Preventing Patients From Falling
As we age, the chances of suffering a fall increase and the injuries that are sustained can be very serious and in some cases even fatal. It’s no wonder that falls are the leading cause of injuries and hospital admissions for adults 65 and above.
According to the Center for Disease Control
- Thirty million older adults fall each year—resulting in about 30,000 deaths.
- Each year, 3 million older adults are treated for a fall injury.
- One out of every five falls causes a serious injury, such as broken bones or a head injury.
- Each year at least 300,000 older people are hospitalized for hip fractures.
- More than 95% of hip fractures are caused by falling—usually by falling sideways.
- Women fall more often than men and account for three-quarters of all hip fractures.
The research indicates that effective interventions reduce the risk of fall by 35-40%
Experiencing a fall can be contributed to one of many different factors or a combination. Some of the risk factors include but are not limited to, blurred vision, muscle weakness, diabetes, osteoporosis, different pain factors, home safety hazards, improper footwear, or mobility limitations.
The good news is that many of the risks leading to a fall can be managed with skilled physical therapy treatment.
Our physical therapist will start your fall prevention program by first asking you a series of questions to uncover any possible underlying factors and then conduct a screening using standardized tests to identify strength and mobility impairments. By evaluating your results the physical therapist can identify the deficits and provide you with an individualized program to minimize fall risk which includes hands on mobility exercises, take home material to continue practices at home, suggestions on home modifications to limit fall risk, and assistive devices if necessary. You and the therapist will discuss your progress throughout the program so you can always know where you stand.
We can successfully treat patients with these diagnoses:
- Dizziness
- Vertigo
- Peripheral Neuropathy
- Peripheral / Central Vestibular Dysfunction
- Stroke
- Parkinson’s Disease
- General Weakness
- Hip Fractures
- Joint Replacement
- Osteoporosis
- Brain Injury
- History of Falling
- And more…