A falls prevention plan tested in 5,000 at-risk older adults has fared no better than usual care for preventing serious injury, say investigators.
After receiving a falls assessment, participants helped clinicians to make an individually tailored risk-reduction plan. Perceived risk factors included home hazards, foot and shoe problems, vision issues and bone loss. Nurses trained in falls care management then oversaw each participant’s care plan in various primary care settings. Participants were followed for at least 20 months.
Meanwhile, control group members received falls prevention pamphlets and were encouraged to follow up with their doctors, who were aware of their initial assessment results.
Investigators noted the length of time to a first serious fall and found no difference between the intervention and control groups, reported Shalender Bhasin, M.D., from Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The number of falls for both groups was lower than expected, however.
The Strategies to Reduce Injuries and Develop Confidence in Elders trial was modeled after small-scale trials showing that risk factor interventions reduced fall rates and fall injuries.
“Other strategies to achieve risk reduction in healthcare systems might be more effective,” the researchers concluded.
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. It was published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
