Fracture Risk Assessment in Elderly with Chronic Liver Disease and its Relationship with Serum Albumin Level

Abstract

Abstract Background Falls and fractures have detrimental effect on health of elderly population. Detection of risk factors for this syndrome is crucial in its prevention, especially in populations suffering negative bone alterations such as patients with chronic liver disease (Stains et al., 2020). Objective To estimate and detect fracture risk factors among elderly with chronic liver disease and relation to serum albumin level. Subjects and Methods A case control study included total number of one hundred and thirty (130) participants recruited form the geriatric outpatient clinic in Ain Shams university hospital in Cairo and chosen by convenience sampling method. The study sample was distributed into two groups: cases (n = 65) with positive history of falls, fall related fracture or risk falls, while controls (n = 65) were negative for these factors. All subjects underwent comprehensive geriatric assessment with focus on liver disease, drug history, assessment of risk of falls using timed up and go test (TUG), with radiological assessment for chronic liver disease and laboratory assessment for serum albumin Results Age difference between cases and controls was statistically significant, where cases had higher mean (74.37 ± 7.17) compared to that of the control group (67.12 ± 5.81). the cases group had higher prevalence of females (66.2%) compared to the control group (44.6%). The diagnosis of hepatic focal lesion was also more prevalent among cases compared to controls (13.8% vs 1.5%). Lower serum albumin levels were found among cases (3.1 ± 0.46) compared to controls (3.1 ± 0.46). Conclusion Higher age, female sex and lower serum albumin level were associated with higher risk of falls, falls and fall related fractures in patients with chronic liver disease. Categories: Preventive Medicine, Public Health, Geriatrics.