Scientific Direction of the Institute of Lumezzane, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, 25065 Lumezzane, Italy.
Neurological Rehabilitation of the Institute of Lumezzane, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, 25065 Lumezzane, Italy.
Sensors (Basel). 2024 Sep 27;24(19):6272. doi: 10.3390/s24196272.
Active wearable devices such as protective smart belts have been proposed to reduce hip impact in the event of a fall. This study primarily evaluated the feasibility and acceptance of a specific protective belt among selected patients identified as being at risk of falling who were admitted to an ICS Maugeri Neurorehabilitation Unit from September 2022 to April 2023. According to previous institutional observations, the device was worn between the 6th and 21st days of recovery. Out of 435 admitted patients, 118 were considered eligible, but 101 declined to participate (about 50% refused to wear the belt without first trying it on; the other 50% found it too heavy or difficult to manage). Among the 17 patients who accepted (users), 9 used the belt correctly. The remaining eight patients refused to wear it after 24 h, due to discomfort. Out of 435 patients admitted, we observed at least one fall in 49 patients, of whom 5 were eligible patients; 1 was a user who had quickly refused to use the belt and fell with mild damage. Two non-eligible patients and one eligible non-user patient experienced falls resulting in hip fractures; only in the latter case could the use of the belt have limited the damage to the hip. Difficulties in recruiting patients and low acceptance of the proposed intervention present further challenges.
主动可穿戴设备，如防护智能腰带，已被提议用于降低跌倒时的髋部冲击。本研究主要评估了一种特定防护带在 2022 年 9 月至 2023 年 4 月期间入住 ICS Maugeri 神经康复科的高危跌倒患者中的可行性和可接受性。根据以往的机构观察，该设备在康复的第 6 天至第 21 天之间佩戴。在 435 名入院患者中，有 118 名被认为符合条件，但有 101 名拒绝参与（约 50%的人拒绝在试戴之前佩戴该腰带；另外 50%的人认为该腰带太重或难以管理）。在 17 名接受（使用者）的患者中，有 9 名正确佩戴了腰带。其余 8 名患者在 24 小时后因不适拒绝佩戴。在 435 名入院患者中，我们观察到至少有 49 名患者跌倒，其中 5 名是符合条件的患者；1 名是使用者，他很快拒绝使用腰带并轻度受伤跌倒。2 名不符合条件的患者和 1 名符合条件的非使用者患者跌倒导致髋部骨折；只有在后一种情况下，使用腰带才能限制髋部损伤。招募患者的困难和对所提议干预措施的低接受度带来了进一步的挑战。
