A Fall Is Not Just a Fall: What Central Maryland Adults Should Know Before September 22

A woman in her early seventies walks down a carpeted staircase at home in morning light, holding a coffee mug and resting one hand on the railing.

Your mother caught her toe on the edge of the hall rug. She got herself up, said she was fine, and went back to what she was doing. Three weeks later she is still moving carefully, still sore across her lower back, and still telling you it was nothing.

September 22 is Falls Prevention Awareness Day, and it lands on the first day of autumn for a reason. Below you will find what a fall can do to the spine and the hip, the injury that most often gets waved off, what actually lowers the risk, and when to have someone looked at.

Reviewed by: Oren G. Blam, MD, a board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon at OACM. He sees patients at our Catonsville, Columbia, and Eldersburg clinics.

Watch: Dr. Oren Blam Talks Back Pain and Treatment

Falls are common, and that is exactly the problem

The numbers are larger than most families expect. The CDC reports that more than 14 million older adults, or 1 in 4, report falling every year, and that falls are the leading cause of injury for adults 65 and older. Roughly 37% of those who fall need medical treatment.

Because falls are so common, they get normalized. A fall becomes a story told at dinner rather than a reason to be seen. That is the gap this awareness day is aimed at.

The injury that gets missed

Hip fractures get attention because they are obvious and they land people in a hospital. The spine injury that follows a fall is quieter.

A vertebral compression fracture happens when a weakened vertebra cracks and loses height under pressure. AAOS describes these as occurring about 1.5 million times a year in the United States, nearly twice as often as the hip and wrist fractures caused by osteoporosis. The pain sits near the fracture, gets worse with movement and position changes, eases with rest, and can flare with a cough or a sneeze.

Read that description again and notice how easily it passes for a pulled muscle. That is why weeks go by.

Most compression fractures settle within about three months with rest, pain management, and sometimes a brace. When pain stays severe, AAOS notes that kyphoplasty uses a balloon to restore height inside the fractured vertebra before cement stabilizes it. OACM performs kyphoplasty in house.

Listen: Kyphoplasty: Small Procedure, Big Relief for Back Pain, Dr. Oren Blam on A Bone to Fix.

About Lynn Hendrickson, PA-C

Lynn Hendrickson, PA-C works with Dr. Blam on spine, neck, and back care. She earned a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies at Shenandoah University after earlier careers in speech-language pathology and elementary education. Her profile notes that her interest in orthopedics is personal, “shaped by her experiences as an athlete and inspired by her father, who continued running in the Colorado Rocky Mountains well into his 90s.”

That detail is worth sitting with on a page about falls. Staying on your feet into your nineties is not luck.

What actually lowers the risk

The good news in the research is that this is one of the more changeable risks in older adulthood.

Exercise, and specifically balance work. The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends exercise interventions for adults 65 and older who are at increased risk of falls, and grades that recommendation a B, meaning it found a moderate net benefit. NCOA makes the same point in plainer terms: anyone of any age or ability can get stronger and improve their balance.

A medication review. Some prescriptions, and some combinations, affect balance and blood pressure in ways that raise fall risk. NCOA lists this among its core prevention steps. It is a conversation worth having at the next appointment rather than assuming.

The house itself. Loose rugs, a dark stairway, a bathroom without a grab bar, a cord across a walking path. None of these feel like hazards until they are.

Vision and footwear. An out-of-date prescription and a worn pair of slippers do more damage than either one sounds like it should.

NCOA also offers a Falls Free CheckUp, a short self-assessment that takes about two minutes and is a reasonable place for a family to start.

When to have someone seen

Call and get an appointment if any of these follow a fall:

  • Back pain that has not eased after a week or two, especially with a history of osteoporosis
  • Pain that spikes with coughing, sneezing, or standing up
  • A visible change in posture, or a sense that they have gotten shorter
  • Any hip or groin pain, or difficulty putting weight through a leg
  • Numbness, tingling, or weakness in a leg

For an obvious emergency such as a head injury, a deformity, or an inability to bear weight at all, go to the emergency room. For everything else, an orthopedic visit with imaging on site gets you to a specialist directly.

Schedule at our Columbia, Catonsville, or Eldersburg clinic

If someone in your family had a fall this summer and has been quietly working around it since, September is a good month to stop working around it. Our spine and pain management team sees patients at Catonsville, Columbia, and Eldersburg, and OACM has physical therapy at eight Central Maryland locations for the strength and balance work that follows.

Call (410) 644-1880 or schedule online.

Frequently asked questions

My parent fell but says nothing hurts. Do they still need to be seen?
If they are moving normally and pain-free after a few days, watchful waiting is reasonable. If soreness lingers past a week or two, or if they have osteoporosis or a prior fracture, get it looked at. Compression fractures are easy to mistake for a strained muscle.
Are falls just part of getting older?
No. NCOA is direct about this, and so is the research. Falls are largely preventable, and strength and balance improve at any age.
What kind of exercise helps most?
Programs that train balance and lower-body strength together have the strongest evidence behind them. The USPSTF recommendation is based on exercise interventions of this kind. A physical therapist can build one around what a person can actually do today.
What is kyphoplasty, in plain terms?
It is a minimally invasive procedure for a painful vertebral compression fracture. A balloon makes space inside the collapsed bone, and cement holds the repair. AAOS describes it here. OACM performs it in house.

Disclaimer

The information in this article is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always speak with a qualified orthopedic provider about your specific symptoms and medical history. To schedule an appointment with Orthopaedic Associates of Central Maryland, call (410) 644-1880 or visit mdbonedocs.com.