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Opal Mattix, 80, of Oskaloosa, is helped onto a stretcher after falling Monday morning on the ice-covered Oskaloosa Herald parking lot. Mattix, who is an inserter for the paper, was taken to Mahaska Hospital with what appeared to be a broken ankle. The hospital later reported a specialist from Des Moines would perform surgery on her right ankle and it would require a plate and screws. Herald photo by Michael Schaffer

February 12, 2008

Hospital emergency director says wrist followed by ankle injuries common from falls.

By MICHAEL SCHAFFER The Oskaloosa Herald Tue Feb 12, 2008, 09:19 AM CST

OSKALOOSA — This year winter in Iowa has meant snow, a lot of snow, actually, combined with a long stretch of sub-freezing to zero degree temperature days and what is left behind in many places is a slick, thick undulating surface of ice.

Many places where the snow was plowed, like parking lots and sidewalks, have remained uneven, ice-covered areas difficult to navigate on and prime areas for slips and falls to occur. And it appears the ice isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Bruce Spahr, emergency services director with Mahaska Health Partnership, said they have seen a slight increase in fall-related injuries over last year. The most common type of fall-related injury is wrist fractures.

“If you think about when your feet go out from underneath of you and you reach back with your hands and try and hold yourself, you can end up fracturing a wrist like that,” Spahr said. “Or falling forward and your hands hitting the ground and fracturing your wrist that way.”

Spahr said the hospital has also received some ankle- and hip-related injuries due to falls this year. And with the ice being jagged, the hospital has seen patients with cuts and lacerations to the hands and legs.

To avoid falling on slippery outdoor surfaces, Spahr recommends to clear off the ice and snow as much as possible, wear shoe attachments like cleats or coils, sprinkle ice melt, sand or kitty litter over the area and slow down.

“When you’re driving your automobiles in weather like this, go slow and take your time. And the same thing goes for walking down the street, go slow and take some time,” Spahr said. “You just never know when there is going to be some ice and stuff that’s underneath of you.”

While the injuries from a fall vary in nature, Spahr said for the less severe, try to wrap or splint the injured area. For other, more severe injuries, call for emergency help.

“Certainly if your fallen and your ankle is really sore or your leg is really sore and you can visibly see that it’s deformed by any means, you should certainly call an ambulance or call for some medical assistance,” Spahr said.

According to a Feb. 5 press release posted on the Iowa Department of Public Health Web site, now Iowans, and especially older Iowans, are most susceptible to slips and falls due to winter ice.

“Falls are the most common cause of traumatic brain injuries,” IDPH Brain Injury Services coordinator Ben Woodworth said in the release. “We should all prepare ourselves for slippery conditions by knowing what to do to avoid a fall and what to watch for if a fall does happen.”

Woodworth said symptoms of a concussion from a fall include “confusion, headache, blurred vision and nausea” and anyone with those symptoms should seek immediate medical attention.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 33 percent of adults aged 65 and older fall each year and is the leading cause of injury deaths and the most common cause of nonfatal injuries. Between 2003 and 2005, falls by people of all ages in Iowa accounted for 41 percent of Emergency Department visits and 48 percent of hospitalizations.

Herald City Editor Michael Schaffer can be reached by email at mschaffer@oskyherald.com