Unintentional injuries among elderly people: incidence, causes, severity, and costs

People aged 60 years or older (1,313 injured) treated for unintentional injuries at the emergency department of the Regional Hospital in Umeå, Sweden, over a period of one year were included in the material. The injury, fracture, and mortality rates per 1,000 persons aged 60 years or over were 57, 31, and 0.6, respectively. The causes of injuries were falls (70%), vehicle accidents (10%), and other (20%). Injury incidence, severity of injuries, proportion of injuries that were fractures, femur neck fracture frequency, duration of hospitalization, and mean costs of medical care increased with age of patients. Women had a higher injury rate, more severe injuries, longer duration in hospital, and higher cost of medical care than men. The cost of medical care of this group of elderly, making up 15% of all injured in the primary admission area, was SEK* 14 million; this being almost half the cost for all injured. Since the elderly population, especially the very old, is expected to increase in the future, prevention of falls (taking up 80% of total treatment costs) and vehicle accidents (causing the most critical injuries) is of utmost importance.