Prevalence of falls and associated risk factors among community dwelling older people in Bulgaria

Pepa Ferreira, Zornica Ambareva, Daniela Mileva, Georgi Cigarovski, Radost Asenova

Keywords: falls, fall prevention, falls screening, elderly care, primary care

Background:

Worldwide, falls are one of the major public health issues related to the aging population. Although 21.5% of the Bulgarian population is age 65 and above, the incidence of falling and associated risk factors haven't been investigated.

Research questions:

To identify the prevalence of falls and associated risk factors among older people in Bulgaria

Method:

A preliminary cross-sectional study was conducted on 110 consecutive patients aged 65 or older in primary care settings from 10th to 14th July 2023. Each participant completed a structured questionnaire based on the face-to-face interview. Data on comorbidities and currently prescribed medications were obtained from medical records. TUG test was applied as a mobility assessment test. The cognitive screening was performed by utilizing Isaac’s Set Test. SPSS version 21 was used for statistical analysis

Results:

35.0% of the participants in the study had fallen within the previous 12 months as 6.2% of them reported experiencing multiple falls. However, less than 2% of the falls were documented in the medical records. None of the falls was coded. 56.4% of respondents were identified as having instability and approximately two third reported being afraid of falling. 72% had documented visual problems in medical records. TUG and Isaac’s Set Test results were significantly worse for fallers (p < 0.05). Low educational levels and poor economic status were also associated with an increased risk of falls.

Conclusions:

This is the first study in Bulgaria, that looks at the prevalence of falls and associated risk factors among community-dwelling older adults. It shows that falls are common, but they are rarely recorded in patients’ medical records and their importance is underestimated. The limitations of the study are the small sample size and the limited number of risk factors analysed. Further studies on the frequency of falls and fall-related risk factors are needed.

Points for discussion:

Falls risk assessment for older patients in primary care

Falls prevention in primary care

Using research findings to change local and national health policies and improve patient care

#121