Background
No study has rigorously explored the characteristics of surgical patients with recent preoperative falls. Our objective was to describe the essential features of preoperative falls and determine whether they are associated with preoperative functional dependence and poor quality of life.
Methods
This was an observational study involving 15,060 surveys from adult patients undergoing elective surgery. The surveys were collected between January 2014 and August 2015, with a response rate of 92%.
Results
In the 6 months before surgery, 26% (99% CI, 25 to 27%) of patients fell at least once, and 12% (99% CI, 11 to 13%) fell at least twice. The proportion of patients who fell was highest among patients presenting for neurosurgery (41%; 99% CI, 36 to 45%). At least one fall-related injury occurred in 58% (99% CI, 56 to 60%) of those who fell. Falls were common in all age groups, but surprisingly, they did not increase monotonically with age. Middle-aged patients (45 to 64 yr) had the highest proportion of fallers (28%), recurrent fallers (13%), and severe fall-related injuries (27%) compared to younger (18 to 44 yr) and older (65+ yr) patients (P < 0.001 for each). A fall within 6 months was independently associated with preoperative functional dependence (odds ratio, 1.94; 99% CI, 1.68 to 2.24) and poor physical quality of life (odds ratio, 2.18; 99% CI, 1.88 to 2.52).
Conclusions
Preoperative falls might be common and are possibly often injurious in the presurgical population, across all ages. A history of falls could enhance the assessment of preoperative functional dependence and quality of life.
Objective: To assess the differences in demographics, the likelihood of receiving treatment, and the clinical outcomes between new patients seen via telemedicine and those seen in person in an academic fertility practice. Design: Retrospective cohort study. Setting: University-based fertility clinic.
Patients are interested in the use of social media as a forum for patient education and support in the infertility clinic. Patient preferences regarding post topics should be carefully considered.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.