CHARACTERISTICS OF FALLS IN 70 YEAR OLDS IN JERUSALEM

Falling is a serious and common problem among the elderly and may resu lt in injury and functional deterioration. The characteristics and ris k factors fbr falling were studied in a cross-sectional study of a coh ort of 70-year-old community-dwelling Jewish elderly in Jerusalem. The cohort was found to be representative of the total 70-year-old popula tion of Jerusalem by virtue of having similar hospitalization and mort ality rates. Around 28.2% of the cohort reported falling during the pa st year, Women were more likely than men to have fallen during the pas t year (39 vs. 19%; P < 0.001). Falls occurred mainly outside of the h ome, resulting in fractures in 8.4% of persons who fell, all of them w omen. A female gender, low visual efficiency, poor self-reported gener al health status, low serum hemoglobin levels, and low lymphocyte coun ts were associated with a higher incidence of falls. There was no rela tionship between the pattern of pharmaceutic drug use or utilization o f health care services and the risk of falling. We conclude that among the younger elderly, characteristics of falls and risk factors may be different from those in the older elderly.