The analysis the frequency and causes of collapses among the elderly suffering from coronary hart disease (CHD). Collapses and coronary hart disease (CHD)
Keywords:
coronary heart disease, fall, old ageAbstract
THE ANALYSIS THE FREQUENCY AND CAUSES OF COLLAPSES AMONG THE ELDERLY SUFFERING FROM CORONARY HART DISEASE (CHD). COLLAPSES AND CORONARY HART DISEASE (CHD)
Introduction. The frequency of CHD incidents increases with age. Involutional changes and coexistence of other diseases cause atypical symptoms and make diagnosis and treatment difficult. Falls experienced by old age people are a significant social problem causing serious medical and economic effects. Both external and internal factors influence the falls.
Material and methods. The aim of this study was to analyze the frequency and causes of falls among the elderly suffering from CHD. A questionnaire consisting of 27 questions, aiming at people over 60 years old with diagnosed CHD, was used as the research method. The examined group of 50 patients from cardiological wards consisted of 25 women and 25 men.
Results. Falls were reported by 54% of the examined group (32% women and 22% men). A single fall was most often reported by individuals aged 61 to 70, while multiple falls were more often reported by people over 70. The analysis revealed that 55.5% of falls were experienced outdoors while 44.4% falls happened at home. The falls usually occurred while walking. Another risk factor that most frequently showed up with people who experienced falls was poorer fitness: 51.9% followed a passive lifestyle, 37% were moving around with the help of walking sticks, crutches, etc. The type of work influenced the falls frequency as well: 74.1% of individuals were blue-collar workers, 14.8% of them were white-collar ones.
Conclusions. Coronary heart disease decreases body efficiency and the coronary pain contributes to the falls occurrence. Frequency of falls increases with the age. It is also more often experienced by women. It is very important to take any preventive actions that may minimize the risk of falls.
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Copyright (c) 2011 Magdalena Kwiatkowska, Katarzyna Porzych, Marcin Porzych, Anna Polak-Szabela, Kornelia Kędziora-Kornatowska, Tomasz Zieliński, Dominika Kozak, Jadwiga Motyl (Autor)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
