Epidemiological characteristics of injury cause by fall in people aged 60 years in Fuyang, Zhejiang, 2009-2011

Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics of injury caused by fall in people aged 60 years in Fuyang and provide evidence for the effective prevention and control of injury. Methods The surveillance data of fall in people aged 60 years were collected from sentinel hospitals in Fuyang and analyzed with Excel 2003 and SPSS 15.0 software. Results Totally 949 old patients sought medical treatment for injury caused by fall in 3 sentinel hospitals during this period. The injuries occurred in autumn and winter accounted for large proportion. The injuries mainly occurred at home when doing housework and leisure activities. The injury site was mainly on lower limbs (29.50%). Most injuries were moderate in severity (60.49%). The place and age specific differences between mild/moderate injuries and severe injuries had no statistical significances. Conclusion According to the results of analysis, targeted psychological, behavioral and environmental interventions should be carried out to reduce injury occurred in elderly people.