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Falls

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Summary

Falls can be dangerous at any age. Babies and young children can get hurt falling off furniture or down the stairs. Older children may fall off playground equipment. For older adults, falls can be especially serious. They are at higher risk of falling. They are also more likely to fracture (break) a bone when they fall, especially if they have osteoporosis. A broken bone, especially when it is in a hip, may even lead to disability and a loss of independence for older adults.

Some common causes of falls include:

Balance problems
Some medicines, which can make you feel dizzy, confused, or slow
Vision problems
Alcohol, which can affect your balance and reflexes
Muscle weakness, especially in your legs, which can make it harder for you to get up from a chair or keep your balance when walking on an uneven surface.
Certain illnesses, such as low blood pressure, diabetes, and neuropathy
Slow reflexes, which make it hard to keep your balance or move out of the way of a hazard
Tripping or slipping due to loss of footing or traction

At any age, people can make changes to lower their risk of falling. It important to take care of your health, including getting regular eye exams. Regular exercise may lower your risk of falls by strengthening your muscles, improving your balance, and keeping your bones strong. And you can look for ways to make your house safer. For example, you can get rid of tripping hazards and make sure that you have rails on the stairs and in the bath. To reduce the chances of breaking a bone if you do fall, make sure that you get enough calcium and vitamin D.

NIH: National Institute on Aging

Start Here

Falls and Fractures in Older Adults: Causes and Prevention (National Institute on Aging) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

Balance Tests (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Fall Risk Assessment (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

Fall Prevention: Simple Tips to Prevent Falls (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Keeping Your Balance (Bone Health and Osteoporosis Foundation)
Preventing Falls and Hip Fractures (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Preventing Falls: Tips to Keep You on Your Feet (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Specifics

Falls in the Workplace (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) Also in Spanish
Tips to Avoid Slips, Trips and Falls, and Prevent the #1 Work-Related Injury (National Institutes of Health, Office of Research Services, Division of Occupational Health and Safety.) - PDF

Statistics and Research

Facts about Older Adult Falls (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Accidental Falls (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

National Institute on Aging Also in Spanish

Children

Falls: First Aid (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
How to Prevent Falls at the Hospital and at Home (St. Jude Children's Research Hospital)
Preventing Falls in Kids (Children's National Hospital)
Preventing Window Falls (Children's National Hospital)

Older Adults

About Older Adult Fall Prevention (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Fall Prevention (AGS Health in Aging Foundation)

Patient Handouts

After a fall in the hospital (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Bathroom safety for adults (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Exercises to help prevent falls (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Preventing falls (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

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MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on Falls is the National Institute on Aging

Other Languages

Find health information in languages other than English on Falls

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