Gs. Brassington et al., Sleep problems as a risk factor for falls in a sample of community-dwelling adults aged 64-99 years, J AM GER SO, 48(10), 2000, pp. 1234-1240
Citations number
54
Categorie Soggetti
Public Health & Health Care Science","General & Internal Medicine
OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine if reported nighttim
e sleep problems and daytime sleepiness were associated with reported faili
ng during the previous 12 months in a representatively sampled older adult
population.
DESIGN: Random-digit dial telephone survey.
SETTING: Representatively sampled older adult population living in northern
California.
PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 971 women and 555 men, aged 64 to 99 years.
MEASUREMENTS: Twenty-minute telephone interview adapted from the National H
ealth Interview Survey.
RESULTS: Two hundred and eighty-four participants reported falling during t
he previous 12 months (19% of the sample). Significantly more women fell th
an men (20 % and 14%, respectively, P < .001). The following variables were
significant risk factors for falling in univariate analyses: female gender
, being unmarried, living alone, income less than $15,000 per year, difficu
lty walking, having more than one chronic medical condition, history of car
diovascular disease, hypertension, arthritis, sensory impairment, psycholog
ical difficulties, and nighttime sleep problems. All of the nighttime sleep
problem variables remained significant risk factors for falling after cont
rolling for other risk factors for falling.
CONCLUSIONS: The results provide support for an independent association bet
ween reported sleep problems and falls in an older population. One of the i
mplications of these data is that behavioral research focusing on the effec
tiveness of insomnia treatment in old age should: not only examine typical
sleep-related outcomes (e.g., total time asleep, number of awakenings) but
also the occurrence of falls as well.