Block 12 Block 12 Week 3 Flashcards
Falls and Fractures in Elderly People
Fall: = an unexpected event in which the participant comes to rest on the ground/floor
Fragility Fracture: fracture from a fall from standing height or less (commonly affects wrists, spine,
pelvis, humerus and femur
Epidemiology of falls
- Due to an ageing population, falls are an increasing problem.
- 5-10% result in serious injury or
fracture, and up to 60% of people who fall sustain some sort of injury. - Falls reduce quality of life, and
are costly in terms of health and social care provision - 40% of nursing home admissions are due to falls
- 30% of over 65s living in the community fall each year, and 50% of 80 year olds fall at least once a
year. - Incidence rates of falls in nursing homes or hospitals is 2-3x higher
Costs of falls
- The annual cost of fractures in the UK is over £4 billion
- Hip fractures account for £2 billion of this
Other consequences of falling
- fear of falling
-reduced physical activity
- functional decline
-impaired activities of daily living
- social isolation
- depression
- an increased risk of falls
-fractures
- if you are on the floor for a long time then possible dehydration, hypothermia, pressure sores, and
pneumonia
What is the leading cause of mortality in over 75s in the UK?
- Falls
Causes of falls
- Environment: poor lighting, rugs, footwear/clothing
- Pathology: parkinsons disease, incontinence, arthritis,
- Drugs: polypharamacy, psychotropics
- Physiology: slowed reflexes, muscle weakness, stiff joints
Important risk factors for falling in elderly patients
- Low bone mineral density
- Age (every 5 year increase in age doubles the risk)
- Female gender
- Low body weight
- Family history of hip fracture
- Prior history of fractures or falls
- Smoking
- Ethnicity (Afro-Carribeans have very low fracture risk, while Caucasians have a higher risk)
- Corticosteroid use
- Gait deficit
- Balance deficit
- Visual deficit
- Cognitive impairment
- Hypotension
- Epilepsy
- Dementia
- Peripheral neuropathy
List the strengths and weaknesses of study designs used to identify risk factors
for falling ?
Many of the studies that look at risk factors for falling are observational or from surveys, which are
unable to identify cause and effect of the variables they’re studying (e.g. asking people how many
falls they’ve had - recall bias, especially in older people)
- Cross-sectional studies are an example of a survey, which aren’t good as they are only looking at one
point in time, making it hard to establish a cause - A case-control study would compare one group with a risk factor for falling to another group without
the risk factor, and these studies are limited by confounding variables and bias - A better study design would be a prospective cohort study, which follows participants and looks at
their baseline characteristics, and then follows them for falls outcomes and associations - Other difficulties encountered in falls research is that well conducted RCTs are needed to provide the
best evidence, but these studies are often highly selective in their populations and settings. Also,
different researchers can have different definitions of what a fall is - Falls research needs to have a long enough follow up to allow sufficient events to occur (12 months is
good), and studies are often not long enough as falls are relatively rare events - Other aspects that can affect falls research is that there can be losses from groups due to illness/
death (due to age), people may not want to comply with the study, people may not admit they’ve had
a fall, and blinding is often impossible causing performance bias
List interventions shown to be effective in preventing falls and fractures
- With hip fractures, fall prevention can help to prevent minor injuries and fractures, but can’t get rid of
all falls. This includes a falls risk assessment, assessing a person’s gait, balance, mobility, muscle
weakness, osteoporosis risk, fear of falling, visual and cognitive impairment, incontinence, home
hazards etc - Falls prevention can also include education for the patient, identification of any medical conditions, a
medication review (and taking patients off of psychotropics), strength and balance training, sensory
evaluation, and any assistive devices - Interventions that have been shown to have no/little effect on falls include brisk walking, being in
residential care (falls increase), doing high intensity strength training (increases injury), and education
and behavioural modifications alone - Surgery for hip fractures should be performed very quickly, with sufficient analgesia, and post-op
physiotherapy and mobilisation should be done
Medications which can protect the bone include
- Bisphosphonates = used for osteoporosis, and reduce hip fractures by 30%, but daily use is
associated with poor compliance and gastric problems - Vitamin D and calcium supplements = 10-15% reduction in hip fracture rate, but vitamin D
alone has no beneficial effect on fracture incidence - HRT = used in post-menopausal women to reduce fractures by 20-30%, but can increase
breast and ovarian cancer risk, as well as cardiovascular disease risk - Teriparatide (PTH) = daily injections for up to 18 months reduces fractures by increasing
osteoblast activity
Outline the approaches to health promotion for falls and osteoporotic fractures
Health promotion for falls and fracture prevention includes trying to make the environment safer for
older people (e.g. good road networks, safe pavements, good street lighting, well built houses,
accessible public transport etc)
- Screening for older adults is about identifying those most at risk of falls and fractures, and preventing
them before they occur. Older people coming into contact with health professional should be asked
routinely about falls, and older people who report falls should be observed for balance and gait
deficits
HIP JOINT
- Hip Joints main function is for STABILITY AND WEIGHTBEARING
- Both the acetabulum and head of femur are covered in articular cartilage, which is thicker at the places of weight bearing.
HIP JOINT LIGAMENTS
Ligament two types:
INTRACAPSULAR and EXTRACAPSULAR
INTRACAPSULAR:
- ligament of the head of the femur/ ligamentum teres. Remnant of the left umbilical vein of the fetus.
EXTRACAPSULAR:
- Iliofemoral ligament (l looks like number 1 strongest)
- Pubofemoral
- Ischiofemoral (s is for slow so its the weakest)
Iliofemoral Ligament
Iliofemoral ligament – arises from the anterior inferior iliac spine and then bifurcates before inserting into the intertrochanteric line of the femur.
It has a ‘Y’ shaped appearance, and prevents hyperextension of the hip joint. It is the strongest of the three ligaments.
PUBOFEMORAL LIGAMENT
Pubofemoral – spans between the superior pubic rami and the intertrochanteric line of the femur, reinforcing the capsule anteriorly and inferiorly.
It has a triangular shape, and prevents excessive abduction and extension.
ISCHIOFEMORAL LIGAMENT
Ischiofemoral– spans between the body of the ischium and the greater trochanter of the femur, reinforcing the capsule posteriorly.
It has a spiral orientation, and prevents hyperextension and holds the femoral head in the acetabulum.
HIP JOINT RADIOLOGICAL APPERANCE
Blood Supply to the Hip Joint
The arterial supply to the hip joint is largely via the branches of the deep femoral artery:
- medial circumflex femoral arteries (majority of blood supply)
- lateral circumflex femoral arteries (has to penetrate through illiofemoral ligament)
They anastomose at the base of the femoral neck to form a ring, from which smaller arteries arise to supply the hip joint itself.
- Damage to the medial circumflex femoral artery can result in avascular necrosis of the femoral head.
- The artery to head of femur and the superior/inferior gluteal arteries provide some additional supply.
Nervous supply to hip joint
- SCIATIC
- FEMORAL
- OBTURATOR
These same nerves innervate the knee, which explains why pain can be referred to the knee from the hip and vice versa.
NECK OF FEMUR FRACTURE (NOF)
- Blood supply to the neck of the femur is retrograde.
- Passing from distal to proximal along the femoral neck to the femoral head. This is predominantly through the medial circumflex femoral artery
-Consequently, displaced intra-capsular fractures disrupt the blood supply to the femoral head and, therefore, the femoral head will undergo avascular necrosis (even if the hip is fixed).
-Patients with a displaced intra-capsular fracture therefore require joint replacement (arthroplasty), rather than fixation
NECK OF FEMUR FRACTURE
- NOF are also known as Subacapital fractures
- A fractured neck of femur (NOF) is a very common orthopaedic presentation. Over 65,000 hip fractures each year are recorded in the UK
- The mortality of a femoral neck fracture up to 30% at one year
- Cause: Neck of femur fractures are typically caused either by low energy injuries (the most common type), such as a fall in frail older patient, or high energy injuries, such as a road traffic collision
- Neck of femur (NOF) fractures can occur anywhere from the subcapital region of the femoral head to 5cm distal to the lesser trochanter
NORMAL GAIT
- Heel Strike
- Support
- Toe- off
- Leg lift
- Swing