PREVALENCE AND FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PREVALENCE OF FALLS AMONG OLDER MEN AND WOMEN - AN ANALYSIS OF THE NATIONAL HEALTH SURVEY 2013
Aging; accidents caused by falls; elderly health.
Introduction: The increase in life expectancy and the older population observed worldwide, despite showing advances in quality of life and health conditions, presents itself as a challenge for the health system due to the increase in the number of chronic conditions that accompany aging. The occurrence of falls affects the health of the older people and increases the demand for health services. At the same time, data suggest that the occurrence of falls does not occur homogeneously between men and women, exposing the need for understanding this discrepancy and what factors are associated with falls according to sex. Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate the factors associated with the occurrence of falls among older men and women with data from the Brazilian National Health Survey (PNS) carried out in 2013. Method: This is a cross-sectional study with data extracted from the 2013 PNS with older adults 60 years or older who were also the resident selected for the interview. A total of 11,177 older people were included in the present study, 4,555 men and 6,622 women. The question “falls in the last 12 months” was used to classify fallers and non-fallers. Socioeconomic data, mental health variables, presence of chronic diseases, physical functioning, life habits and reproductive history were also evaluated. Data analysis was performed using the chi-squared test and binary logistic regression stratified by sex, considering p value < 0.05. Results: Of those interviewed, 7.7% (n=1,825) reported that they had suffered a fall in the last 12 months. Of these, 67.6% were women and 32.4% were men. The occurrence of falls was associated with difficulty in performing basic activities of daily living, the use of auxiliary devices for locomotion, looking for a health service in the last two weeks and the presence of mental health complaints for both men and women. For men, the occurrence of falls was also associated with not practicing physical exercise or sports in the last 3 months, while for women it was associated with not living with a spouse or partner, difficulty with instrumental activities of daily living, and victimization due to violence. Conclusion: Older men and women share some common factors associated with falls and others are gender specific. The presence of more variables associated with falls in women suggests that, in addition to the physical issue, they are also more affected by social variables that must be considered when designing public policies aimed at this population.