Results for search "Falls".
Cataract surgery could restore good vision to older people and by doing so cut their odds for potentially life-threatening falls, a new study finds.
Folks who got the surgery had significantly lower odds for bone fractures and brain hemorrhages linked to falling compared to people with cataracts who didn't get the operation, researchers report.
The benefits were even greater than ex...
More than 14 million seniors a year take a tumble, and those falls can be life-changing.
"The relationship between falls and dementia appears to be a two-way street," said Molly Jarman, senior author of a new study showing that cognitive decline may increase an older person's risk for a fall and the tr...
Drinking can increase a senior’s risk of a brain bleed following a fall, even if they only occasionally imbibe, a new study finds.
In fact, the risk of a brain bleed increases with a senior’s level of drinking, researchers found.
Occasional or weekly drinking doubled a pers...
Blood pressure medications appear to more than double the risk of life-threatening bone fractures among nursing home residents, a new study warns.
The increased risk stems from the drugs' tendency to impair balance, particularly when patients stand up and temporarily experience low blood pressure that deprives the brain of oxygen, researchers reported recently in the journal
Falls, frostbite, fractures: They are all potential hazards of icy winter conditions. But experts say there's a lot you can do to avoid injury when snowflakes fall.
First, stay warm.
According to the New York City Department of Health, people lose the bulk of their body heat through their heads, so scarves, hats and hoods are essential.
Other trouble spots -- ...
Seniors with vision issues are at much higher risk for dangerous falls, new research confirms.
Compared to seniors with good vision, the odds for a fall rose by 38% for seniors with glaucoma, 36% for those with cataracts and 25% for seniors with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), say a team reporting Dec. 28 in the journal
The risk of falls increases in older age, and along with it, the risk for serious physical or psychological damage, but there are steps people can take to help prevent these accidents.
Each year, about 27% of adults 65 and older fall and about 10% of those are injured.
"If you've experienced a fall or have a fear of falling, you are at a higher risk of falling. Once an older adult f...
When it comes to falling down stairs, young women are more prone to take a tumble than their male counterparts.
According to a new study, this is because they are more likely to be distracted or to wear impractical footwear.
Going down a staircase while talking or texting on the phone or engaging in other distractions is an invitation to take a header, researchers report. Women were...
A federal website intended to help people choose a nursing home not only contains inaccurate information, but those inaccuracies appear to be at least partially driven by race, a new study reports.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) established the Nursing Home Care Compare website in the 1990s to publicly report patient safety indicators for every nursing facility ...
Older Americans are dying of falls at more than double the rate of 20 years ago -- with women, men and all racial groups showing increases, according to a new study.
In 2020, the study found, just over 36,500 Americans age 65 and up died of a fall-related injury. That was up from roughly 10,100 deaths in 1999.
Adjusted for age, those numbers translated into a more than twofold incre...
For older Americans, a fall is no laughing matter.
According to the National Council on Aging, more than 1 in 4 people over age 65 fall each year, and falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries among the elderly. However, falls are not a normal part of aging.
So why do the elder...
Sen. Mitch McConnell is back home more than two weeks after he fell at a private dinner and was hospitalized with a concussion and broken rib.
The Senate Minority Leader spent five days in the hospital and the remainder of the 2-1/2 weeks following his fall in inpatient physical therapy.
"I'm in frequent touch with my Senate colleagues and my staff,"McConnell said in a
There's nothing like the comfort and security of home. For many, a home is a place filled with fond memories of happy times.
It's no wonder older adults choose to extend their independence by trying to stay in their homes as they get older, an experience called aging in place.
But as a person ages, what used to be ordinary in the home can be challenging or even a hazard. Almost one-...
Nearly one-third of older people fall each year, most of them in their own homes. But it's possible to reduce those numbers by a quarter, according to a new study.
Five steps can cut the risk of falls by 26%, the researchers reported in the March 10 issue of the Cochrane Database of ...
While older women are treated for falls more often than elderly males, men are more likely to sustain skull fractures when they topple over, new research suggests.
This is a serious concern because more than 3 million people aged 65 and older are treated in U.S. emergency departments each year for falls.
"The high incidence of head injury and subsequent skull fractures due to falls...
More than 700,000 older Americans rely on public transportation to get to and from their medical appointments.
That's roughly 1 in 10 seniors who live in cities.
But when individuals were frail, or used a wheelchair, or sidewalks along their route were damaged, they were less likely to take the subway or bus, pointing to a need for improvement, according to a
Every year, anywhere from 700,000 to 1 million people fall while in U.S. hospitals, and this often triggers a downward health spiral.
Little has been shown to make a dent in those numbers. Until now.
Enter Smart Socks, which are wired with sensors that send an alert...
A new report delivers a troubling statistic: Seven in 10 consumer product-related deaths occur among those over 65, even though these people only account for 16% of the U.S. population.
Each year, consumer products are linked to roughly 3,800 deaths and nearly 3 million emergency department visits among older Americans, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
Almost everyone has had a dizzy spell after standing up too quickly, but some people suffer them regularly. Now, a new study suggests two do-it-yourself ways to help.
The study focused on what's called initial orthostatic hypotension (IOH), where a person's blood pressure drops sharply within...
Blows to the head are common among America's kids, with close to 7% showing signs of a brain injury at some time in childhood, U.S. health officials report.
Sports, falls and abuse are likely causes, experts say.
Concussions and other head injuries are more common among white kids than Black or Hispanic kids. And prevalence increases with age -- from 2% in children up to 5 years ol...
Older blood thinners, especially when taken in combination with daily low-dose aspirin, are associated with a higher risk of brain bleeds and death after hospital discharge in patients treated for head injury, new research shows.
The risk fell when patients were taking one of the newer blood thinners, said the authors of a study presented Tuesday at the annual meeting of the Radiological ...
A holiday visit with older relatives might be a good chance to help them remove fall risks in their home, an expert suggests.
Older adults' risk of falling may have increased during the pandemic due to declines in physical activity and mobility, along with increased isolation, a University of Michigan poll shows. Many also became more fearful of falling, which, in turn, can increase the r...
Seniors, looking for a way to stay mentally quick and physically strong? Start scrubbing.
Researchers from Singapore say housework may be a key to keeping your brain sharp as you age.
Their new study found that in older adults, cleaning house was tied to a better memory and attention span, a...
Your Jack-o'-Lantern may be more than scary -- it could be dangerous.
Pumpkin carving is the leading cause of injuries associated with Halloween, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Between October and November 2018 in the United States, 44% of Halloween-linked injuries were connected with pumpkin-carving activities.
More than one-quarter of Halloween-rel...
Movement can be very difficult for people with Parkinson's disease, as shaking and stiffness play havoc with balance, coordination and gait.
There are many different tricks Parkinson's patients can use to improve their walking and avoid injury from a bad tumble -- but a new study reveals that people often have to figure them out on their own, with no help from either a doctor or physical ...