Physical consequences of falls in the elderly: a literature review from 1995 to 2010

In the last decade, population ageing has been registered as a global phenomenon. A relation exists between falling and ageing, since falling frequency increases significantly with age. In fact, one in three older adult falls annually. Although ageing is generically associated with decrease and degeneration of psychological and physical functions, it is still not common for the correct identification of risk factors to lead to a clinical prognosis of the elder being in risk of falling. Therefore, the goal of this review article is to identify, categorise and analyse typical ageing and fall factors mentioned in the literature as well as to quantify the number of times they were referenced. The research considered hundreds of publications, but analysis was then restricted to the 87 most pertinent articles written in English and published in journals or scientific magazines between 1995 and 2010. We concluded that falls among older adults can be characterised by the following: anatomic characteristics and physiological consequences of ageing; the pathologies that induce falls, which can be neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and other diseases; causes and risk factors of falls that can be behavioural, biological, environmental or socio-economic; type of physical consequences of falls, including fractures, bruises, injuries or other physical consequences; and strategies to prevent, mitigate or rehabilitate, which can be of a physical, environmental or behavioural nature.

Physical consequences of falls in the elderly: a literature review from 1995 to 2010

In the last decade, population ageing has been registered as a global phenomenon. A relation exists between falling and ageing, since falling frequency increases significantly with age. In fact, one in three older adult falls annually. Although ageing is generically associated with decrease and degeneration of psychological and physical functions, it is still not common for the correct identification of risk factors to lead to a clinical prognosis of the elder being in risk of falling. Therefore, the goal of this review article is to identify, categorise and analyse typical ageing and fall factors mentioned in the literature as well as to quantify the number of times they were referenced. The research considered hundreds of publications, but analysis was then restricted to the 87 most pertinent articles written in English and published in journals or scientific magazines between 1995 and 2010. We concluded that falls among older adults can be characterised by the following: anatomic characteristics and physiological consequences of ageing; the pathologies that induce falls, which can be neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and other diseases; causes and risk factors of falls that can be behavioural, biological, environmental or socio-economic; type of physical consequences of falls, including fractures, bruises, injuries or other physical consequences; and strategies to prevent, mitigate or rehabilitate, which can be of a physical, environmental or behavioural nature.

Utilização do método Multicritério AHP, na aquisição de um sistema ERP

The selection of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is one of the most sensitive and highest impact processes in the area of information systems and technologies, because it supports and integrates the whole business of an organization. Hence the importance of deciding the best solution in order to contribute to the organization's competitiveness in a global and increasingly demanding market. Therefore, it is essential to provide tools to support decision making, turning complex and often intangible decisions into simple and quantifiable scenarios. This study addressed the adoption of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) multicriteria decision method to support the selection of an ERP system. The literature review was the source used to obtain the set of the most relevant criteria to be considered in this decision, which were subsequently validated through systematic application of various surveys of experts and people related to the field of ERP systems. To support the application of AHP, according to the model obtained in the study, it was developed a web application that will be available to the general public. The responsible for the acquisition of ERP systems can use it to easily apply the AHP method based on validated decision model. On the other hand, the web application can be used as a validation tool, allowing collecting data for future developments of the decision model.