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More than 125,000 readers throughout Greater Baltimore
Avoiding a fall is no small feat
DECEMBER 2014
I N S I D E …
PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER MYERS
By Carol Sorgen Two years ago, Harriet Kohl fractured her right kneecap when she tripped over a jutting piece of sidewalk while taking a walk in her Charles Village neighborhood. Two months ago, while on a long-awaited trip to Amsterdam, she tripped over a suitcase in a crowded train station. That time, Kohl fractured her left kneecap. “To put it mildly, I was ticked off,” said the 71-year-old artist. (Actually, that’s not the word she used, but you get the drift.) Fortunately, she didn’t need surgery either time. Spending six to eight weeks in a knee brace, and using a cane for assistance, put her back on track. But Kohl said that the experience of falling is frustrating, to say the least. “It’s uncomfortable and tiring, and there are days you just want to throw the cane or the crutch across the room,” she said. Kohl has found out first-hand — twice now — just how debilitating a fall can be. And she’s not alone.
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Number of falls not falling Falls are the leading cause of injury and accidental death in adults over the age of 65. Every 15 seconds, an older adult is treated in an emergency room for an injury related to a fall. In 2012, nearly 24,000 people over 65 died after a fall — almost twice the number of a decade earlier, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Clutter, inappropriate footwear, poor balance, distractions and tripping hazards — such as an uneven sidewalk or piece of luggage — can contribute to a stumble or fall. The increased number of falls has also been partly attributed to a rise in diseases that are often linked to falls — including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis and Parkinson’s disease — as well as to the medications frequently used to treat these diseases. (Many medications can cause dizziness and lightheadedness.) Impaired vision and, perhaps surprisingly, hearing loss are additional potential culprits. According to a recent study by Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, falls are nearly three times more likely to occur among people with mild hearing loss. When people can’t hear well, they may be unaware of
While staircases can be the culprit in some falls, Harriet Kohl broke both her kneecaps in recent years, tripping over an uneven sidewalk and a piece of luggage. Falls are the leading cause of injury and accidental death in older adults, but there are many steps, from exercise to better lighting, that can help prevent them.
their surroundings and struggle more to maintain proper balance, increasing their chance of tripping and falling. Nancy Jackson is not unfamiliar with falling. She spent many years horseback riding, and even suffered a fractured pelvis after being thrown from a horse. But she wasn’t prepared for breaking an ankle last summer while hiking with her husband and two nephews. “I stepped on a rock, fell on my leg and heard my ankle snap,” she recalled. This was Jackson’s second fall in as many years. Her first was caused by tripping over an uneven sidewalk while carrying a box into her office. Instead of trying to save herself, she tried to save the box, and wound up with a sore head and a cracked rib.
“After a fall, you feel old,” said Jackson, who is 56 and lives in Perry Hall. “It changes your life.” Jackson said she now finds herself looking down all the time to try to avoid missteps. Still, as cautious as she is, she worries. “I like to be active,” Jackson said. “But I’m very nervous about falling again.” Indeed, the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) reports that some people become so afraid of falling (either before or after an actual fall) that they stop doing activities they used to enjoy. Ironically, this is exactly the opposite of what they should be doing. “Remaining physically active is an essential part of preventing See PREVENTING FALLS, page 32
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