The role of lower urinary tract symptoms in fall risk assessment tools in hospitals: a review

Quantitative Analysis of the Causes of Falls in Adult Hospitalized Patients Based on the Perspective of Text Mining

OBJECTIVE

This study harnesses the power of text mining to quantitatively investigate the causative factors of falls in adult inpatients, offering valuable references and guidance for fall prevention measures within hospitals.

METHODS

Employing KH Coder 3.0, a cutting-edge text mining software, we performed co-occurrence network analysis and text clustering on fall incident reports of 2,772 adult patients from a nursing quality control platform in a particular city in Jiangsu Province, spanning January 2017 to December 2022.

RESULTS

Among the 2,772 patients who fell, 80.23% were aged above 60, and 73.27% exhibited physical frailty. Text clustering yielded 16 distinct categories, with four clusters implicating patient factors, four linking falls to toileting processes, four highlighting dynamic interplays between patients, the environment, and objects, and another four clusters revealing the influence of patient-caregiver interactions in causing falls.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the complex, multifactorial nature of falls in adult inpatients. Effective prevention requires a collaborative effort among healthcare staff, patients, and caregivers, focusing on patient vulnerabilities, environmental factors, and improved care coordination. By strengthening these aspects, hospitals can significantly reduce fall risks and promote patient safety.

Time-Varying Hazard of Patient Falls in Hospital: A Retrospective Case-Control Study

This study aims to evaluate the association between patient falls and relevant factors and to quantify their effect on fall risk. This is a retrospective case-control study using the secondary data collected from a tertiary general hospital. Study subjects were 450 patients who were admitted to the hospital between January 2016 and December 2020. The prevalence of falls was associated with the fall risk level by the Morse Fall Scale (MFS) and individual status at admission including history of admission, dizziness, sleep disorder, bowel dysfunction, and urinary incontinence. The odds ratios of patient falls were higher in the low-risk group by the MFS score (odds ratio (OR) = 2.61, p < 0.001) and the high-risk group (OR = 5.51, p < 0.001) compared to the no-risk group. The hazard ratio of patient falls was higher in the high-risk group by the MFS score (hazard ratio (HR) = 3.85, p < 0.001). The MFS had a significant explanatory power to predict fall risk. Sleep disorder and urinary incontinence were the significant factors influencing patient falls.

The Bladder at Night during Hospitalisation: Towards optimal care for elderly patients with nocturia

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to describe the characteristics of nocturia in older hospitalised patients and to explore knowledge, beliefs and experiences associated with night toileting while in hospital in order to identify unmet care needs.

METHODS

A multisite mixed methods cross-sectional study of older hospitalised adults who were admitted for ≥2 days was conducted using a standardised researcher-administered questionnaire. An additional cohort 16 older hospitalised adults with nocturia >twice per night were interviewed to understand the experience and impact of nocturia during hospitalisation.

RESULTS

Nocturia was experienced by 260 out of 308 participants. In-hospital nocturia was significantly correlated with nocturia in the month preceding admission, high diurnal voiding frequency and nocturnal urinary urgency. Bother was attributed to multiple nocturia episodes. Participants had poor knowledge and understanding of nocturia and believed the symptom to be a normal occurrence; only 20% had discussed management with staff. Disrupted sleep and fear of falling were common in older immobile participants with nocturia.

CONCLUSION

Nocturia is highly prevalent in hospitalised older people. Toileting multiple times at night bothers patients, disrupts sleep, heightens a fear of falling yet is rarely addressed in ward management plans. A screening process to identify, assess, provide education and intervene for nocturia has the potential to improve wellbeing, safety at night and to address risk factors.

Are falls in people with multiple sclerosis related to the severity of urinary disorders?

BACKGROUND

Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTSs), especially overactive bladder, are frequent in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Urinary urgency and urge urinary incontinence could lead to precipitation and thus could increase the risk of falling in these individuals.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to assess the association between severity of LUTSs and risk of falling in PwMS.

METHODS

PwMS with LUTSs were recruited in a neuro-urology department. Participants were asked about the number of falls in the past 3 months and their circumstances. Severity of LUTSs was assessed by the Urinary Symptoms Profile (USP) score, and individuals were classified as with or without urinary incontinence.

RESULTS

This cross-sectional study included 154 patients (69% women); the mean (SD) age was 50.1 (11.5) years and median EDSS was 5 (interquartile range 3-6). Overall, 20 (13%) patients reported one fall during the past 3 months, and 43 (28%) reported at least 2 falls. Only 9 (6%) patients reported a fall on the way to the toilet, 6 during a urinary urgency. No link was found between falls and urinary incontinence (P=0.71), type or severity of urinary symptoms (overactivity, voiding dysfunction or stress incontinence, P>0.05). Falls on the way to the bathroom was associated with high USP score related to overactive bladder (P=0.03) and severe nocturia (>2 nocturnal micturitions) (P<0.01). Falling at night was also associated with severe nocturia (P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The severity of LUTSs and presence of urinary incontinence do not appear related to the risk of falling in PwMS and urinary disorders but rather to the specific risk of falling on the way to the bathroom. Severe nocturia increases the risk of falling at night. Further studies are needed to assess the impact of LUTS treatment on the risk of falling. ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04338646).