How increasing dizziness can prove fatal to senior citizens

Hyderabad: Dizziness among the older population increases the fall risk by around 60%, a study has revealed, resulting in a higher possibility of injuries, disability, and death.

Though old people, above the age of 65 can suffer from dizziness, medications for pre-morbidities can increase the occurrence of dizziness, leading to fall incidents.

The study has also insisted not to consider dizziness as part of aging, since this can be a result of other medical conditions and due to the administration of medicines for hypertension and diabetes.

Experts also advise exercising precautions to ensure facilities for the elderly, including adequate lighting facilities at homes and appropriate footwear to prevent fall incidents.

Dizziness, an independent factor for Fall

Recent research from Imperial College London has proved that dizziness in older adults is not just another aspect of aging, but rather a significant predictor of future falls. Dizziness is used to describe sensations, including vertigo, loss of balance, and spatial disorientation.

A smaller study by the researchers on seven targeted studies has revealed that elderly individuals who experience dizziness face twice the risk of experiencing multiple falls in the future. This underscores the importance of addressing the dizziness in older populations and the findings are published in the journal Age and Ageing.

Dr Srikrishna R Biddu, consultant physician, Kamineni Hospitals, LB Nagar, Hyderabad said, “It is true that people with dizziness are at greater risk of falling. Since their skeleton strength will be less with advanced age, the recovery requires much longer time”.

The combined decline of the visual system, vestibular system (inner ear), and proprioceptive system (comprising sensory nerves) can significantly impact an individual's balance and spatial awareness, leading to dangerous falls.

Medications can increase dizziness

Most elderly people suffer from a variety of medical conditions including hypertension, obesity, and diabetes, requiring daily medications. The side effects of the medications consumed by individuals for a prolonged period can also add to the possibility of dizziness.

“Most elderly people suffer from orthostatic hypertension, a cardiovascular condition when their blood pressure increases when standing up. They also feel like fainting. Further, the regular medications for people with pre-morbidities like hypertension, high dosage for diabetic can also increase dizziness”, Dr Srikrishna added.

Precautions needed

Since the three important systems play a crucial role in the fall risk among elderly people, experts call for precautions to prevent the risk and ensure safety. Since the condition called ‘Osteoporosis’ prevails in the older age group, where the bones become more brittle and are prone to breakage even while bending down, more care is essential.

“We have to ensure adequate lighting facilities for the elderly in the places frequently used by them. Precautions must be taken to ensure the size of the footwear to avoid them from slipping down while even walking in normal places”, Dr Srikrishna added.

The fall in the above 65 age group can lead to permanent disability and severe injuries requiring longer time to recover while head injuries can be fatal. The experts call for adequate testing to be done since several new assessment methods have emerged to estimate the fall risk.