Nov. 19 (UPI) -- About 60 percent of older adults with vision problems will fall each year, a study said.
Those findings come from a recent study in the Journal of the Geriatrics Society that showed nearly 30 percent of people over 65 will fall. Nearly one and 11 adults in that age group suffer from vision impairment, a number experts expect to rise.
Researchers sought to use these statistics to help prevent falls, slips, or tripping among adults with vision impairments. They found that over one and four adults had at least two falls within one year, even before they participated in the study.
Falls result in a large number of illnesses and death in older people annually.
Researchers say that preventing falls among older adults can help improve their quality of life.
According to the National Council on Aging, every 19 minutes an older adult dies from a fall. The financial costs for those falls from older adults will account for nearly $68 billion by 2020.
The rising number of falls among older adults have become more of a problem due to the higher number of people in that group.
From 1950 to 2000, the number of people 65 or older rose by four points to 12 percent, according to the School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California. By 2020, they expect that number to reach 20 percent.
Today, 46 million people are 65 or older, according to the Population Reference Bureau.
"We need more information about falls and the fear of falling in older adults with vision problems. This will help us design public health and clinical interventions to address some of the key consequences of vision loss for older adults," Joshua R. Ehrlich, the study co-author said in a press release.
