Relationship of depression and medications on incidence of falls among people with late effects of polio

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to determine if falls in polio survivors, with or without post-polio syndrome (PPS), are related to number of medications taken, use of anti-depressant or psychoactive medications, or self-report of depression. A survey was sent to 300 members of a regional polio support group, asking them to document their fall history, medications used, and the presence of depression. Depression was measured by self-report and with the Geriatric Depression Scale, short form (GDS-15). One hundred and seventy-two usable surveys were returned with 146 of those completing the medication list. Sixty-two percent reported at least one fall in the past year. The multiple logistic regression was significant (p = 0.023), and it indicated depression to be a significant predictor (p = 0.012) of falls in polio survivors with and without PPS. The number of total medications or anti-depressant or psychoactive medications used was not related to fall incidence. Routine screening and treatment for depression may be one aspect of fall prevention which can be implemented through primary care.

KEYWORDS:

• Depression
• falls
• late effects of polio
• post-poliomyelitis syndrome

Acknowledgments

We wish to thank the following for their aid in our research: Pat Lindsay and the organization of TPSA, for their assistance in the distribution of and funding for postage of the mailed surveys; Doris Scarborough and the Bay Area Polio Survivors’ Association; and Rene Paulson, PhD and Zoheb Allam, MS for statistical assistance. This study was presented by C Da Silva, R Olkin, and B Zuckerman (2015—Relationship of depression and medications on incidence of falls among people with late effects of polio) in poster format at American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Combined Sections Meeting (CSM), Indianapolis, IN. Survey analyses and results from other parts of the pilot questionnaire were presented in poster format by Kelley CP, Housinger E (2013—Relationship of mobility, balance confidence, and depression with falls among survivors of polio) at APTA CSM, San Diego, CA. B Zuckerman was a student physical therapist at Texas Woman’s University during the time of this study, working on this project for partial degree fulfillment of her degree requirements.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no declarations of interest.