Table 3. Characteristics of falls in daily life.
Values are counts with percentage in parentheses. The p-value is for Fisher’s exact test, comparing fall characteristics between groups; ‘do not recall’ responses were excluded from the analysis. Note that three reported falls were excluded; for two (1 PBT and 1 HIS) the participant was asleep and fell out of bed, and for one (HIS) the participant fell due to a loss of consciousness.
| HIS | PBT | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cause of fall | |||
| Slip | 12 (38.7) | 2 (20) | 0.73 |
| Trip | 9 (29.0) | 3 (30) | |
| Incorrect weight transfer* | 10 (32.3) | 5 (50) | |
| Activity at the time of the fall | |||
| Sitting | 1 (3.2) | 1 (10) | 0.0009 |
| Standing | 2 (6.5) | 0 (0) | |
| Walking on level surface | 9 (29.0) | 2 (20) | |
| Walking up stairs | 0 (0) | 5 (50) | |
| Transferring | 9 (29.0) | 0 (0) | |
| Turning/reaching/bending | 6 (19.4) | 1 (10) | |
| Walking on a moving surface† | 1 (3.2) | 1 (10) | |
| Other‡ | 2 (6.5) | 0 (0) | |
| Where did the fall occur | |||
| Indoors | 26 (83.9) | 4 (40) | 0.013 |
| Outdoors | 5 (16.1) | 6 (60) | |
| Action to try to prevent the fall | |||
| Do not recall | 4 (12.9) | 1 (10) | |
| None | 9 (29.0) | 2 (20) | 0.13 |
| Step | 5 (16.1) | 5 (50) | |
| Other§ | 6 (19.4) | 1 (10) | |
| Assistance required to get up from fall | |||
| Do not recall | 6 (19.4) | 0 (0) | |
| No | 19 (61.3) | 4 (40) | >0.99 |
| Yes | 6 (19.4) | 6 (60) | |
| Injuries | |||
| Do not recall | 5 (16.1) | 0 (0) | |
| None | 19 (61.3) | 3 (30) | 0.026|| |
| Cuts or bruises | 3 (9.7) | 6 (60) | |
| Joint sprain | 3 (9.7) | 1 (10) | |
| Bump on head | 1 (3.2) | 0 (0) | |
| Medical assistance required after fall | |||
| Do not recall | 5 (16.1) | 0 (0) | |
| No injuries | 19 (61.3) | 3 (30) | |
| Injured but did not seek treatment | 5 (16.1) | 6 (60) | >0.99¶ |
| Saw family physician | 0 (0) | 1 (10) | |
| Treated in hospital emergency room | 2 (6.5) | 0 (0) | |
Incorrect weight transfer is defined as “self-induced shifting of body weight causing the centre of gravity to move outside the base of support”, e.g., missed step, missed seat when sitting down, turning too quickly35
Escalator (1 fall) and treadmill (1 fall).
Stepping backwards (1 fall), and loading a car (1 fall).
Attempted to control fall by sitting or kneeling (4 falls), leaned onto furniture (1 fall), used an ‘in-place’ response (2 falls), or an reach-to-grasp response (8 falls).
Analysis compared no injury to any injury, ignoring the type of injury.
Analysis compared number of individuals who sought any medical assistance to those who did not seek medical assistance, ignoring the type of assistance sought. ‘Do not recall’ and ‘no injuries’ responses were excluded from this analysis.