Elliott Sharon, Painter Jane, Hudson Suzanne
Therapeutic Life Center, Greenville, NC 27836, USA.
J Community Health. 2009 Aug;34(4):301-10. doi: 10.1007/s10900-009-9152-x.
As part of a larger study on fall-related risk factors, this study investigated the relationship between living alone status and fall-related variables among community-dwelling adults who lived in a rural county in eastern North Carolina. A convenience sample of 666 community-dwelling adults ages 50 and over participated in this 4-year study and completed a fall questionnaire. Significant findings were found in relation to living alone status and experiencing a fall, who they informed about their fall, injuries, safety equipment, ambulatory devices, and personal emergency response system usage. Three hundred thirty-eight participants stated they lived alone, compared to 300 who lived with others. The percentage reporting a fall was appreciably larger for those living alone (52%) than for those living with others (48%) in both genders in all age groups except for the 61-70 year old adults where the percentage was less. Findings from this research enhance knowledge about the prevalence and contributing fall-related factors in adults who live alone compared to those who live with others. Insights gained from this research will assist community and public health leaders and health care professionals in developing more efficacious intervention strategies to prevent or reduce falls, and associated psychological and physical consequences.
作为一项关于跌倒相关风险因素的大型研究的一部分，本研究调查了居住在北卡罗来纳州东部一个乡村县的社区居住成年人中独居状态与跌倒相关变量之间的关系。一个由666名年龄在50岁及以上的社区居住成年人组成的便利样本参与了这项为期4年的研究，并完成了一份跌倒调查问卷。在独居状态与跌倒经历、告知他人跌倒情况、受伤情况、安全设备、移动辅助设备以及个人应急响应系统使用情况等方面发现了显著结果。338名参与者表示他们独居，相比之下，300名与他人同住。在所有年龄组的男女中，除了61 - 70岁成年人中跌倒报告百分比较低外，独居者报告跌倒的百分比（52%）明显高于与他人同住者（48%）。这项研究的结果增进了对独居成年人与与他人同住成年人相比跌倒患病率及相关因素的了解。从这项研究中获得的见解将有助于社区和公共卫生领导者以及医疗保健专业人员制定更有效的干预策略，以预防或减少跌倒以及相关的心理和身体后果。
