The risk of fall accidents for home dwellers with dementia—A register‐ and population‐based case‐control study

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Institutionalized people with dementia have an increased risk of fall accidents, but little is known about whether this increased risk holds for home dwellers. Methods This register‐ and population‐based study comprised 115,584 cases and 394,679 controls. Cases were individuals with any fall between 2009 and 2014, and matched with up to six controls on age, sex, and geographic location. Individuals were excluded if they (1) had any fall in 2008, or (2) lived in a nursing home on the date of the fall. Dementia, other chronic diseases, and sedative medicines were assessed from Danish national registers. Results After adjusting for potential confounders, older people with dementia living at home had a 1.89‐fold higher risk of fall (odds ratio = 1.89, 95% confidence interval [1.84–1.94], P < .001). Discussion Dementia almost doubles the risk of fall for older Danish people living at home. This highlights the need for effective fall preventions that target people with dementia.

Keywords

• Dementia
• Falls
• Comorbidity
• Sedative medicine
• Home dwellers