Ebrahim N, Ras J, November R, Leach L
Department of Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science, Faculty of Community and Health Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Robert Sobukwe Rd, Bellville, Cape Town 7535, South Africa.
S Afr J Sports Med. 2025 Aug 15;37(1):v37i1a20605. doi: 10.17159/2078-516X/2025/v37i1a20605. eCollection 2025.
Falls among older adults are a major concern, frequently resulting in injuries and a decreased quality of life. While medication use is known to be a key contributor to fall risk, the specific medications have not been thoroughly investigated. This study is vital to investigate the relationship between specific medications and fall risk, aiming to strengthen safety measures and minimise falls among the elderly in care facilities.
To determine the relationship between medication use and the risk of falling among the elderly living in Long Term Care (LTC) facilities.
The study used a cross-sectional design to investigate males and females, aged 60 years and older, living in retirement facilities in the City of Cape Town. A convenient sampling method was utilised to recruit a total of 258 participants from multiple long-term care facilities in Cape Town, South Africa. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used to determine associations between falls, fall risk factors, and various medications used.
Majority of participants were at low risk (81%; n=211), 15.1% (n=39) at moderate risk and 3.1% (n=8) at high risk for falling. Antidepressant [χ (1)=4.941; p=0.026; OR=2.083 (95% CI: 1.082, 4.012)] and anti-diabetic [χ (1)=4.097, p=0.043, OR=2.070 (95% CI: 1.013, 4.228)] medications were the only drugs significantly associated with falling.
These findings highlight the significant association between antidepressant and anti-diabetic medications and an increased risk of falls. Effective medication management and fall prevention strategies are essential among this vulnerable population. Clinicians should carefully assess the risks of these medications when prescribing to older adults and consider alternative treatments when necessary.
老年人跌倒问题备受关注，常导致受伤及生活质量下降。虽然已知药物使用是跌倒风险的关键因素，但具体药物尚未得到充分研究。本研究对于调查特定药物与跌倒风险之间的关系至关重要，旨在加强安全措施并尽量减少护理机构中老年人的跌倒情况。
确定长期护理（LTC）机构中老年人的药物使用与跌倒风险之间的关系。
本研究采用横断面设计，对居住在开普敦市退休设施中的60岁及以上男性和女性进行调查。采用便利抽样方法，从南非开普敦的多个长期护理机构中招募了总共258名参与者。使用Spearman等级相关系数来确定跌倒、跌倒风险因素与各种使用药物之间的关联。
大多数参与者跌倒风险较低（81%；n = 211），15.1%（n = 39）为中度风险，3.1%（n = 8）为高风险。抗抑郁药[χ(1)=4.941；p = 0.026；OR = 2.083（95%CI：1.082，4.012）]和抗糖尿病药[χ(1)=4.097，p = 0.043，OR = 2.070（95%CI：1.013，4.228）]是仅与跌倒显著相关的药物。
这些发现凸显了抗抑郁药和抗糖尿病药与跌倒风险增加之间的显著关联。在这一弱势群体中，有效的药物管理和跌倒预防策略至关重要。临床医生在为老年人开处方时应仔细评估这些药物的风险，并在必要时考虑替代治疗方法。
