Patient/caregiver was educated that falls & accidents in seniors could result from one or many of the following reasons:
Motor weakness:
- Age-related degeneration of muscle tissue and loss of muscle tone can contribute to progressive motor weakness, resulting in serious fall incidents in senior citizens.
Sudden change of position:
- Blood supply to the head and brain tend to suffer in sudden standing position, as blood tends to pool heavily in lower extremities and must travel to the head, up against gravity.
- Also, strong muscle tone is needed to help drive the blood from lower extremities, against gravity, towards the head. Most often, senior citizens present with poor muscle tone, which compromises the blood drive towards the head & brain.
- Rich blood supply to the head & brain is very important to prevent episodes of confusion and dizziness. So, unplanned and sudden change of position, especially from sitting to standing can result in reduced blood supply to the head & brain. This can result in confusion and dizziness, contributing to fall.
Medications:
- Confusion and dizziness happen to be side-effects of many medications, such as, pain killers, antipsychotics, antidepressants, tranquilizers, and many more.
- Senior citizens could be on recommendation for intake of one or many of these medications mentioned.
- Inappropriate timing of medication intake can result in these medications being taken at the same time, which can enhance the confusion & dizziness induced heavily. Thus, noncompliance with medication instructions & precautions can be a serious fall risk.
Altered mental states:
- Dementia can be very common in senior citizens, resulting in episodes of confusion & dizziness. Poor orientation to surroundings in demented state can be a severe fall risk.
