Citation

Tinetti ME, Liu WL, Marottoli RA, Ginter SF. J. Am. Med. Assoc. JAMA 1991; 265(4): 468-471.

Affiliation

Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.

Comment In:

JAMA. 1991 Jan 23-30;265(4):502-3

Copyright

(Copyright © 1991, American Medical Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

1985233

Abstract

The aims of this 1-year, prospective observational cohort study were to 1) describe the prevalence and incidence of restraint use among elderly residents in 12 New Haven, Connecticut area nursing homes; 2) describe the patterns and duration of restraint use; 3) identify the reasons for initiating restraints; and 4) identify the resident and nursing home characteristics associated with mechanical restraint use. The authors found that the use of mechanical restraints in nursing homes was common and usually intermittent for reasons of safety and behavior in disoriented, active residents. While their results verify the impression that restraint use is perceived as involving a choice between safety and independence, the authors discovered little data concerning the effectiveness of restaints on reducing injury or improving behavior among elderly nursing home patients.

Language: en