Posttraumatic stress symptoms in older adults hospitalized for fall injury

Abstract

Objective Although unintentional falls may pose a threat of death or injury, few studies have investigated their psychological impact on older adults. This study sought to gather data on early posttraumatic stress symptoms in older adults in the hospital setting after a fall. Method Participants in this study were 100 adults age 65 years or older admitted to a large urban hospital in New York City because of a fall. Men and women were represented approximately equally in the sample; most were interviewed within days of the fall event. The study's bedside interview included the Posttraumatic Stress Symptom Scale, which inquires about the presence and severity of 17 trauma-related symptoms. Results Twenty-seven participants reported substantial posttraumatic stress symptoms (moderate or higher severity). Exploratory bivariate analyses suggested an association between posttraumatic stress symptom severity and female gender, lower level of education, unemployment, number of medical conditions, and back/chest injury. Conclusions A significant percentage of older patients hospitalized after a fall suffer substantial posttraumatic stress. Future investigations are needed to assess the association between the psychiatric impact of a fall and short-term inpatient outcomes as well as longer-term functional outcomes.

Predictors of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms and Association with Fear of Falling After Hip Fracture

“…Although other researchers have found high rates of PTSD (27% with moderate to severe posttraumatic stress) after hip fracture, the current study found a very low rate. This may have been because of differences in assessment methods.…”

“…Falling is among the most common potentially traumatic events in late life, especially when it results in serious injury such as hip fracture. In individuals aged 65 and older, falls are the leading cause of injury‐related death and the most common cause of nonfatal injuries and hospitalization for traumatic injuries .…”

Literature review and meta‐analysis of risk factors for delayed post‐traumatic stress disorder in older adults after a fall

“…These three included articles were published between 2009 and 2014 (Chung et al, 2009;Bloch et al, 2014;Jayasinghe et al, 2014). The number of older subjects participating in these studies was between 23 and 100, and the number of patients with PTSD was between 6 and 27, which represents an average prevalence of 27.5%.…”

“…These findings are consistent with Jayasinghe et al 's () recent results showing that older women with medical burden are at risk for early post‐traumatic stress after falls in convergence with the range of clinically significant symptoms found in survivors of accidental injury. But, isolating these two patterns may mostly help isolate a population at risk for delayed PTSD that may benefit from dedicated treatment and provide them with appropriate rehabilitation at the critical times when this syndrome is likely to appear.…”

Trauma Caused by Injury or Abuse in Late Life: Experiences, Impacts, and the Federal Response

“…Furthermore, falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries for older adults [43]-in 2015, 28,486 older adults died from a fall incident [44]. The health consequences of a fall vary, but can include bone fractures and breaks, lacerations and wounds, head injuries [45], and posttraumatic stress disorder [46]. With respect to head injuries, falls are the most common cause of TBIs in the United States [47] and among adults ages 65 and older, 79 percent of TBIrelated ED visits, hospitalizations, and deaths were caused by falls [48].…”