SCI Fall-Related Unintentional Injury Calculator

Fall Related Injury Calculator

For Persons with Spinal Cord Injury

















This is a tool to help you understand the risk of unintentional injuries due to falls among people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Unintentional injuries are unplanned and unexpected. Examples include broken bones, dislocations, burns, and cuts.

This tool is based on our cross-sectional study of 4670 people with SCI. It focuses on unintentional injuries that happen as a result of a fall where one has been injured seriously enough to receive medical care in a clinic, emergency room, or hospital. This calculator shows the probability of having at least one unintentional injury due to fall in a 12 month time frame. This is based on identifying how other people with SCI who have answered the same basic questions. Because the data were collected at a single point in time, we cannot determine cause and effect.

The estimates are based on our research give a general idea of risk and what places people with SCI at risk for unintentional injuries. They will help people see how likely, they are on average, to have an unintentional injury due to a fall based on a number of factors, including health behaviors. Because findings vary from study to study, the estimates are only to give a general idea of an individual’s risk compared to that of others with similar characteristics. It also will help people to see how they can reduce their risk of unintentional injuries.

Our Unintentional Injuries Due To Falls Calculator used the following factors:
1. Sex (Male, Female)
2. Current age
3. Years post-injury
4. Walking status
5. SCI neurological level
6. Race/ethnicity, we use a combination of race-ethnicity and because of limitations in our data, it is analyzed in three groups: non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, and Other, which includes Hispanic, Asian, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, American Indian, Alaskan Native.
7. Household income
8. Weight status
9. Alcohol misuse
10. Non-medical substance misuse
11. Frequency of prescription medication usage
12. Prescription medication misuse

Source of data: The data upon which the calculations are based are taken from a study of behavioral factors and unintentional injuries (Cao, DiPiro, Li, Roesler, and Krause, 2019).

Calculator limitations:
There are factors that relate to risk of unintentional injuries due to falls that are not accounted for within this formula. We are unable to include other factors because we have used findings from a single study.

DISCLAIMER: Your risk of an unintentional fall may relate to your health condition or your medications you are taking to treat the condition. Talk with your doctor or healthcare provider before making any changes to your use of medications.

This calculator is only intended to be one tool to help you understand how certain factors relate to an important outcome – unintentional injuries due to falls. You should NEVER base healthcare or other important decisions solely on individualized calculators or other types of printed or online materials. You should consult your doctor or other healthcare provider if you have questions or concerns regarding your health, quality of life, or longevity.

Reference:
Cao, Y., DiPiro, N.D., Li, C., Roesler, J., & Krause, J.S. (2020). Behavioral factors and unintentional injuries after spinal cord injury. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, (101):412-7