TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2022//
TI  - Frequency and characteristics of falls, fall-related injuries, and fear of falling among wheelchair users with spinal cord injury
JO  - Journal of spinal cord medicine
A1  - Abou, Libak
A1  - Rice, Laura A.
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - CONTEXT/OBJECTIVE: To investigate the frequency and characteristics of falls, fall-related injuries, and fear of falling (FOF) among non-ambulatory individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). <br><br>METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study design that included 59 non-ambulatory individuals with SCI. Participants completed a survey on demographics, SCI characteristics (type of injury, level of injury, and time since injury), FOF, activities curtailment due to FOF, and frequency of falls and fall-related injuries in the past 6 months. Characteristics of the most recent falls and fall-related injuries were also collected. A directed content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. <br><br>RESULTS: Overall, 63% of the study participants reported falling at least once, 46.7% reported injuries after falls, and 73% reported FOF during the previous 6 months. Participants commonly reported falling inside of the house (74.6%), during transfers (43.2%), and associated with obstacles on the way (54.5%) or surface conditions (36.4%). Almost half of the participants (42.3%) reported never received education on fall prevention from a healthcare professional. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: The results confirm that falls, fall-related injuries, and FOF are a common concern in this population. These findings contribute to the knowledge base for the future development of fall prevention programs specific for non-ambulatory individuals with SCI.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1079-0268
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10790268.2022.2097995
ID  - ref1
ER  -