Author:

• Adriana Cristina Nicolussi - NICOLUSSI, A.C. - Ribeirão Preto, SP - Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto - USP - <drinicolussi@ig.com.br>

Thematic Area:

Não Categorizado

Abstract:

Objective: to conduct an Integrative Literature Review and to evaluate the produced scientific knowledge regarding quality of life of elderly that suffered falls. Methods: the articles were selected using the LILACS, CINAHL and MEDLINE databases, with the follow-up keywords: quality of life, aged and aged and over and accidental falls, published in Portuguese, English and Spanish, between 1999 and 2009. Results: nine articles accomplished the inclusion criteria. The falls were frequent for the elderly, the elderly with more intrinsic risk factors and those had falls were who that had more fear and had more chance to fall again, and they had deficits in physical, mental and emotional functions, pain and in relationship to environment and that falls preventions programs can improve the quality of life of the elderly over time. Conclusions: knowledge gaps were revealed by a low of national publications, mainly by nurse authors and the predominance of descriptive studies, with weak levels of evidence. We suggest that health professionals conduct interventions researches to falls prevention that can be used in the clinical practice in improving the quality of life of the elderly.
Keywords: quality of life, aged, accidental falls, health of the elderly, review.

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