Georgia Injury Law Blog
Seniors in Atlanta are at a high risk of suffering serious injuries in a slip and fall accident because of their age, gait, vision problems and a number of other factors.A new study conducted in the UK focuses on how a senior’s direction of gaze and walking style affects his risk of a fall accident.
The research is being funded by the Age UK, and is probing the link between vision and a slip and fall accident.Researchers are specifically looking at the theory that a person’s risk of a fall accident increases when he is looking straight ahead, and not down at obstacles that are in front of him.According to the research, older adults who look directly ahead at obstacles in the distance may be at a higher risk of a fall accident than those who look at obstacles in front of them.
Age UK is planning more studies into the prevention of fall accidents involving the elderly.Soon, the group will initiate a new study involving people over the age of 65.Researchers are currently looking for subjects who will participate in this new research.The research will involve a four-hour experiment during which the subjects must walk over a 7 m walkway.The participants will be required to take precise steps on a target marked on the road, as well as over a series of marked obstacles.While they walk, a number of variables will measured, including the participants’ eye and body movements.Saliva samples will be tested.Participants will also be surveyed about their experiences while walking.Through this study, the researchers hope to determine safer ways of walking for senior adults.
A senior citizen is at a much higher risk of a slip and fall accident because of a number of factors.Seniors may suffer from failing vision, which may affect their ability to identify hazards that contribute to a fall.Besides, senior citizens have problems with body gait, which can affect balance and body coordination and increase their risks of a slip and fall.They may also have poor reflexes, which affect their ability to grab onto something at the beginning of the fall.
Slip and fall accidents can lead to much more serious injuries in a senior adult than any other person.These persons are prone to a condition called osteoporosis in which there is decreased bone mineral density.Such seniors are at a high risk of suffering fractures and broken bones in an accident.A hip fracture in a senior citizen can have much more serious consequences than in a younger person.Bones can take a longer time to heal in senior adults.Besides, surgeries are riskier in these people because of their advanced years and the prevalence of other medical conditions.
Therefore, it’s important for apartment building owners, commercial property owners and others to ensure that their properties are free of fall hazards and safe for senior visitors to use. For more information, see Slip and Falls by the Elderly.
The Atlanta slip and fall accident lawyers at the Katz Personal Injury Lawyers represent persons who have been injured in slip and fall accidents across Georgia.