Article

The purpose of this study was to estimate the relative risk of an injurious fall
requiring medical attention in veterans with multiple sclerosis (MS) compared
with veterans without MS after controlling for sex, age, and healthcare use. The
sample included 195,417 veterans treated at Veterans Health Administration (VHA)
facilities in the Northwest United States in fiscal year 2008. We obtained
information regarding MS diagnosis, injurious falls (operationalized as
International Classifi cation of Diseases-9th Revision-Clinical Modification
codes E880-E888), and demographic and healthcare use data from the VHA Consumer
Health Information Performance Set database. Using logistic regression, we
determined the adjusted odds ratio (OR) of an injurious fall to be three times
higher in female veterans with MS than in female veterans without MS (OR = 3.0,
95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6-5.5). The adjusted OR of an injurious fall for
men with MS was also higher than for men without MS, but this difference was not
statistically significant (OR = 1.2, 95% CI = 0.8-2.1). We recommend further
studies evaluating the medical, social, and economic consequences of injurious
falls, as well as interventions to prevent injurious falls, to improve the
independence and quality of life of veterans and others living with MS.

Langue : ANGLAIS