Fall Awareness

Last Friday I got a phone call from my Dad saying that my Gram had fallen at home. They were hesitant to go to the hospital due to COVID. They have been quarantined in their home for the last 7 weeks. Both my grandparents are 82 and for the most part in great health. Gram is active and still loves to play golf then the weather is right. She couldn’t believe it happened and so fast. She was reaching towards the center of the table to grab her glasses and was using the dinning room chair as support. The chair fell and so did Gram. Popop was able to get her up and seated on his rollator (a rolling walker with a seat). He got her into bed and put some ice on her hip. She states that her wrist bothered her more than anything, but after 5 minutes that pain subsided and her hip/leg pain became worse. I was able to video chat with them and my parents and determined she needed to go to the ER for x-rays, potential fractured hip. Thankfully they went because she had a fracture of the neck of her femur. Basically, she had a fracture at the top of her thigh bone that connects the ball of the hip joint. They decided to do a partial hip replacement the following morning. This has been a challenging time for both of them. They are not letting any visitors into the hospital because of COVID and Gram was the main caregiver for my Popop. It has been hard on family both local and distant. She is doing well and was discharged after 5 days in the hospital. They kept her longer because with the virus, they are not sending patients to rehab centers and because she would not have additional help 24/7 at home.

I know many people reading this have heard a very similar story about a neighbor, relative, friend, or spouse. It is very common! How common you ask? 1 in 4 Americans aged 65 and older fall each year. Every 11 seconds an older adult is seen in the emergency room due to a fall and every 19 minutes an older adult dies from a fall. Falls in general result in more than 2.8 million injuries treated in the ER annually, including over 800,000 hospitalizations and more than 27,000 deaths. The cost of fall injuries annually keeps rising, approximately over $50 billion, Medicare and Medicaid pay for majority of those expenses however the numbers are astonishing.

How do we prevent or lessen the number of falls?

– Ensure the home is free of tripping hazards

– Get rid of throw rugs or properly secure them

– Make sure all cords are out of walking area

– Immediately clean up spills

– Store all clothing, dishes, food, and other necessities within an easy reach

– Use nonslip mats in your tub and shower

– Use a bath seat allowing you to sit while showering

– Use night lights in your bedroom, bathroom, and hallways

– Turn on lights before going up or down stairs

– Use handrails when going up or down stairs

– Grab bars for the shower or tub

– Proper footwear while in the home

– Wear non slip socks, good slippers that stay on your feet, or good house shoes

– Try to avoid getting up on the ladder or step ladder if you alone or off balance at all

– If you need an assistive device (walker, cane, rollator) PLEASE use it

– Don’t be afraid or embarrassed to ask for help

Have you noticed you are feeling a little more off balanced than you use to or you would just like to feel more comfortable in your home? Call up your local physical therapist. They can assess you and get a baseline of where you are. Treatments would consist of strengthening exercises, education on home safety, and balance exercises.

Here are a few exercises you can do at home that are safe and effective. Please remember if at any point you feel uncomfortable or don’t feel safe, please STOP and wait until you can do them with someone around. Remember these are just a few exercises you can do at home to help strengthen your legs, hips, and buttock. Strengthening these muscles will help you feel more stable. For safety reasons, I recommend you do the balance exercises with your therapist.

Seated marches

Start with 20 total, then continue to increase the number or do them for 2 minutes. Lifting one knee then the other. Make sure you are keeping your back nice and tall and your knees should be at a 90 degree angle while performing.

Seated knee extensions

Start with 20 total, with this one I want you to make sure you are focusing on tightening your quadriceps, thigh, muscle when performing. If you have ankle weights you can add them as this exercise gets easier, however be careful adding 1 pound can make a big difference.

Mini squats at counter

Start with 10 and the build yourself back up. Holding onto your counter, you can also have a chair behind you to feel more secure, you are going to slightly bend your knees and then come back up. On the way up, I want you to squeeze your buttocks to bring your hips forward.

Hip extension at counter

Start with 10 on each leg and then build up depending on how you feel. Start with holding onto the counter, standing nice and tall, you will bring one leg behind you. The leg does not need to go far and the knee should stay straight. While bringing it back, you are going to squeeze your buttock.

Hip abduction at counter

Start with 10 per side until that feels comfortable and then build up. Start at the counter and bring your leg out to the side and slightly back. Once again when you are bringing your leg out make sure you are squeezing your buttock, try not to lean with this exercise. If you feel yourself leaning then you are lifting the leg too much. It is a small movement.

Side stepping at counter

Start with going up and back twice and see how you feel, it also depends how long your counter is. Holding onto the counter you are going to side step, maintaining and upright posture and making sure you are lifting your feet. You should not be able to hear your foot moving across the floor, if you can then you need to pick your foot up. The lady in the picture has a band on, that is an advance exercise. Stick to no band and just increasing the laps.

Disclaimer: I am in no way diagnosing anyone, if you have persistent pain you need to call your local physical therapist and schedule an appointment.