Fall risk and incidence of delirium in hospitalized orthopedic patients

Introduction: The fall risk and fall-related injuries, as well as the risk of developing delirium, represent a constantly increasing public health problem, especially in societies with an aging population. Objective: This study aimed to assess the level of risk for falls in patients before hip or knee surgery and the frequency of delirium after hip or knee surgery. Materials & Methods: The study was conducted as an observational, analytical cross-sectional study by surveying hospitalized patients at the Clinic for Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology, Novi-Sad, Serbia, between the beginning of December 2022 and the end of January 2023. Results: From the total number of patients (N = 106), the majority (61.3%) were over 70 years of age, of which the largest number were female (female = 80 (75.5%)). The highest percentage of respondents had a level II fall risk (73.6%), while level I and level III risks had 14 respondents each (13.2%). The results of the 4AT score showed that the largest number of patients, N = 50 (47.2%), had delirium or cognitive impairment with low probability, with possible cognitive impairment in 40 patients (37.7%), while delirium was possible in 16 patients (15.1%). Conclusion: Orthopedic patients hospitalized at the University Clinical Center had level II fall risk, and the largest number of these patients had a low probability of cognitive impairment or postoperative delirium.