Are dehydration and diuretic use more commonly associated with falls in frail, elderly patients compared with the robust elderly?

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Introduction: This study aimed to measure the prevalence of dehydration and diuretic use in older patients presenting to the Emergency Department of a large metropolitan hospital with falls. Materials and Methods: Subjects were recruited as a convenience sample from all patients aged over sixty years presenting with falls. The mean age of the 204 recruits was 81 years and 65% were female. Demographic, clinical, medication and falls information were collected on admission and the subjects were classified as either robust (101 subjects) or frail (103 subjects) utilising the Edmonton Frail Scale. Results and Conclusions: Compared to robust subjects, frail fallers were more likely to use diuretics (34% frail, 14% robust, p=0.001), to be dehydrated (20% frail, 7% robust, p=0.001) and to have both diuretic use and dehydration (13%, 3% robust, p=0.01). These findings suggest that dehydration, potentially exacerbated by diuretic use, is common amongst older patients admitted after a fall, particularly amongst the frail. These two factors, in the frail elderly in particular, merit further study as potentially modifiable causes of falls.

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