Emergency Medicine Department, National University Hospital, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119074.
Singapore Med J. 2009 Mar;50(3):278-83.
The elderly population in Singapore is steadily increasing, thus increasing the stress on healthcare provision and financing. Elderly injuries result in significant mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to identify the injury patterns, specific risk factors involved and needs of the elderly so that the current emergency model of care for the injured elderly can be improved and injury prevention strategies devised.
We conducted a retrospective study of all elderly aged 65 years and older seen for trauma in an emergency department over six months. Data captured in the real-time computer system was studied with regard to patient profile, mechanism of injury and patient disposition.
720 patients aged 65 years and older were seen for trauma in the first six months of 2005, accounting for 10.4 percent of the total attendance for that age group. Home injuries (67.9 percent) were the most common, followed by road-related injuries (21.2 percent). 85.3 percent of the injuries were due to falls. 49.9 percent of the patients were admitted to hospital. We also examined the underlying causes of the injuries and the common injuries sustained.
Injuries in the elderly is a significant problem. Most of the injuries occur at home and falling is the commonest cause. Many of the injuries are potentially preventable. Several possible injury prevention strategies and improvements to the current emergency model of care of the injured elderly are discussed. The establishment of a national elderly injury surveillance database is advocated.
新加坡的老年人口稳步增加，这对医疗保健的提供和融资造成了压力。老年人受伤会导致较高的死亡率和发病率。本研究旨在确定老年人的受伤模式、具体涉及的危险因素以及他们的需求，以便改进当前针对受伤老年人的急救模式并制定出预防伤害的策略。
我们对 65 岁及以上在急诊室因创伤就诊的所有老年人进行了一项回顾性研究，研究时间为六个月。对实时计算机系统中记录的数据，就患者特征、受伤机制和患者去向进行了研究。
2005 年前六个月，共有 720 名 65 岁及以上的老年人因创伤就诊，占该年龄段总就诊人数的 10.4%。家庭伤害（67.9%）最常见，其次是与道路相关的伤害（21.2%）。85.3%的伤害是由跌倒引起的。49.9%的患者住院。我们还检查了受伤的根本原因和常见的受伤情况。
老年人受伤是一个严重的问题。大多数伤害发生在家里，跌倒最常见。许多伤害是可以预防的。讨论了几种可能的伤害预防策略和对受伤老年人当前急救模式的改进。提倡建立一个全国性的老年人伤害监测数据库。
