Summary

This was the first study assessing falls prospectively in middle-aged women. The 1-year incidence was 42% for any fall, which suggest falls are a major issue in middle-aged women. Middle-aged women, particularly those sustaining a fall, could be a target group for fall-prevention strategies.

Purpose

Incidence and circumstances of falls in middle-aged people are poorly understood. This cohort study aimed to elucidate the incidence and circumstances of falls over 1 year in middle-aged women.

Methods

Falls were recorded monthly for 1 year by questionnaire in 2017–2019 in a population-based sample of women aged 41–62 years. The incidence of falls and injurious falls and related circumstances were descriptively analysed.

Results

Of 273 women, 115 sustained 209 falls. The 1-year incidence was 42% for any fall, 17% for multiple (two or more) falls, and 24% for injurious falls. The incidence was greater in older age groups for any fall (33, 45, and 44% for people aged < 50, 50–55, and > 55 years, respectively), multiple falls (7, 14, and 22%) and injurious falls (15, 20, and 28%), although only the incidence of multiple falls was significantly increased across the three age groups (P = 0.01). Most falls occurred outdoors (71%) and were attributed to tripping and slipping (60%)

Conclusions

Falls are a major issue in middle-aged women, a group that has been largely ignored in the prevention of falls. Middle-aged women, in particular those sustaining a fall, could be a target group for fall-prevention strategies. Future studies are needed to identify risk factors for falling in this population so as inform the development of strategies for preventing falls in middle-aged women.

中文翻译：

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中年妇女跌倒的发生率和情况：一项队列研究。

概括

这是第一项前瞻性评估中年女性跌倒的研究。任何跌倒的 1 年发病率为 42%，这表明跌倒是中年女性的主要问题。中年女性，尤其是那些持续跌倒的女性，可能成为预防跌倒策略的目标群体。

目的

对中年人跌倒的发生率和情况知之甚少。本队列研究旨在阐明中年女性 1 年以上跌倒的发生率和情况。

方法

在 2017-2019 年的 41-62 岁女性人群样本中，通过问卷调查每月记录跌倒 1 年。对跌倒和伤害性跌倒的发生率及相关情况进行描述性分析。

结果

在 273 名女性中，115 人持续跌倒 209 次。任何跌倒的 1 年发病率为 42%，多次（两次或更多）跌倒为 17%，伤害性跌倒为 24%。对于任何跌倒（年龄 < 50、50-55 和 > 55 岁的人分别为 33%、45% 和 44%）、多次跌倒（7%、14% 和 22%）和伤害性跌倒，其发生率更高跌倒（15%、20% 和 28%），尽管在三个年龄组中只有多次跌倒的发生率显着增加（P = 0.01）。大多数跌倒发生在户外 (71%)，归因于绊倒和滑倒 (60%)

结论

跌倒是中年女性的主要问题，在预防跌倒方面，这一群体在很大程度上被忽视了。中年女性，尤其是那些经常跌倒的女性，可以成为预防跌倒策略的目标群体。未来的研究需要确定该人群跌倒的风险因素，从而为制定预防中年女性跌倒的策略提供信息。