Screening, Intervention Do Not Cut Falls, Fractures in Seniors

HealthDay News reports that screening for fall risk and targeted exercise, with or without a multifactorial intervention to prevent falls, does not reduce fractures in older adults. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine considered 9,803 persons aged 70 and older who were randomly assigned to receive fall prevention advice by mail only, falls-risk screening and targeted exercise plus mail advice, and falls-risk screening, exercise, and targeted multifactorial fall prevention in addition to advice by mail. The researchers determined that 89 percent of the exercise group and 87 percent of the multifactorial fall-prevention cohort returned completed fall-risk screening questionnaires, of whom 37 percent were considered to be at higher fall risk and were invited to receive the intervention. Fracture rates were not lower with screening and targeted intervention. The researchers observed only small gains in health-related quality of life and the lowest overall costs in connection with the exercise strategy. "Some possible benefits were associated with screening and a targeted offer of exercise, including small enhancements of quality of life and reduced healthcare costs," they concluded.