I hope you have had a safe and fun Halloween. Thank you to all the people that are staffing the EDs on a Saturday Night Halloween.
Prostate-Selective Alpha Antagonists have been tied to Falls and increased risk of fractues in elderly men. These medications can lead to syncope and hypotension putting patients at increased risk of falls. A recent canadian study showed that at 90 days of use; individuals on alpha antagonists were at increased risk of hospital visits for falls (1.45% vs. 1.28%) or fractures (0.48% vs. 0.41%). There was also an increased risk of head trauma.
Please warn patients that are on these medications of the risks, so that injuries can be minimized. They should take specific care when changing postural positions, and report episodes of lightheadedness to their PCPs.
The article can be found at http://www.bmj.com/content/351/bmj.h5398
References
WelkBlayne, McArthurEric, FraserLisa-Ann, HaywardJade, DixonStephanie, HwangY Joseph et al. The risk of fall and fracture with the initiation of a prostate-selective α antagonist: a population based cohort study2015; 351 :h5398
