Abstract
Purpose :
The aim of this study is to compare the risk of falls, depression symptoms and postural balance in the elderly before and after facectomy.
Methods :
This is a cross-sectional study consisting of 17 individuals of both sexes aged ≥ 40 years, diagnosed with cataracts. Data collection was carried out in two phases (the first phase before and the second after facectomy) using the same questionnaires and tests in both of them. They were performed from January 2020 to March 2020. In each phase, all patients responded to two tests of balance and locomotion, identification, quality of life related to visual function and analysis of questionnaires of depressive symptoms. In all analyzes, the same level of significance was used (p <0.05).
Results :
Regarding the general characteristics of the sample, 17 patients were analyzed, with a mean age of 65 years, 70.6% of whom were female. Of the total number of patients, 11 of them were afraid of falling and, after the procedure, this number decreased by 8. When analyzing the depressive symptoms, which can induce falls, 82.3% of the patients showed improvement, punctuating before the facectomy an average of 32.06 (SD ± 6.67) and after the facectomy an average of 30.53 (SD ± 8.22), being statistically significant (p <0.05). As for the quality of life related to routine activities, such as climbing stairs and identifying environmental obstacles, all patients reported levels of difficulty in the preoperative period, but in the post-facectomy, 64.7% and 58.8% of the patients had no difficulty to climb stairs and identify environmental obstacles, respectively, with an average score of 92.88 (SD ± 15.61) in the first application of the questionnaire and resulting in an average score of 98.18 (SD ± 12.71), being statistically significant (p <0.05).
Conclusions :
It is primordial to analyse a multicausal risk factors for falls , however, it was found with the data raised that cataracts is an independent factor for falls. The surgical procedure increased patients' dexterity and confidence when referring to walking.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.