Original investigationsDialysis therapiesFalls in hemodialysis patients: Prospective study of incidence, risk factors, and complications
Section snippets
Definition of a fall
A fall is defined as an event that results in coming inadvertently to the ground. Unintentional falls onto a chair or bed, as well as impacts against an object during which the subject did not come to rest on the ground, thus were excluded.7 A serious fall is defined as a fall causing a fracture, requiring hospitalization, or causing death.
Study design
All patients on thrice-weekly HD therapy for longer than 3 months in 7 Belgian in-center HD units were asked to participate in the study. Within 1 month, all
Included patients
Three hundred thirty-nine patients were asked to participate. During the baseline (1-month) evaluation period, dropouts were caused by death (n = 5), transfer to nonparticipating HD units (n = 5), or renal transplantation (n = 1). Eventually, 308 of 328 eligible patients (94%) agreed to participate. The participation rate varied from 76% to 100% (median, 99%) in the 7 participating units. The 308 participating patients (174 men) had a median age of 70.9 years (range, 25.3 to 92.8 years). They
Discussion
We prospectively studied the incidence, risk factors, and complications of falls in long-term HD patients. None of these aspects had yet been assessed, even retrospectively, despite the well-known substantial incidence of falls in elderly nonuremic patients,5, 7 the growing number of elderly HD patients in the United States and Europe,15, 16 and the growing interest for geriatrics in nephrology and dialysis.17, 18
The incidence of falls in HD patients was high: 1.18 fall/patient-year.
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Participating members of the Université Catholique de Louvain Collaborative Group: D. Becker, P. Bernis, J.L. Christophe, C. Cuvelier, R. Cuvelier, I. Devriendt, J. Ghysen, J. Jamez, G. Loute, J.M. Pochet, A. Quoidbach, F. Reginster, M. Wauthier (nephrologists), M.H. Cornet, A.P. De Man, M. Denis, F. Dental, F. Devergnies, A. Ghislain, G. Gregoire, A. Naze, F. Pegard, C. Saintenoy, N. Soenen, M. Vanderputten, R. Vanrusselt, and J. Wasterlain (members of HD nursing staffs).