More falls among older people treated with opioids

Canadian researchers have recently added further confirmation of what many clinicians have long suspected. Among 67929 patients (mean age nearly 81 years), the percentage of patients who had filled an opioid prescription in the two weeks preceding a hospitalization for traumatic injury was 4.9% (95% CI 4.7%–5.1%) for patients who had had a fall, compared with 1.5% (CI 1.2%–1.8%) for those who had had an injury through another mechanism. After controlling for confounding variables, opioid users were 2.4 times more likely to have a fall rather than any other type of injury. For patients who had a fall-related injury, those who used opioids were at increased risk of in-hospital death (OR 1.58; 95% CI 1.34–1.86). More at http://www.cmaj.ca/content/190/16/E500