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A Canadian study says that anti-depressants are linked to fall-related injuries like hip fracture among the elderly.
According to the study at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, fall-related injuries like hip fractures are the fifth leading cause of death.
The study, which has published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, says anti-depressants showed the strongest statistical links with falling, probably because of their sedative nature.
It said falls are deeply associated with several groups of drugs, including sedatives often prescribed as sleep aids and medications used to treat mood disorders.
As per the study, anti-psychotic neuroleptics frequently used to treat schizophrenia and other psychoses and benzodiazepines like valium are also associated with falls.
"These findings reinforce the need for judicious use of medications in elderly people at risk of falling," said Lead Investigator Carlo Marra, an Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the university.
"Safer alternatives, such as counselling, shorter-term or less-sedating therapies, may be more appropriate for certain conditions," he said.
The Canadian researcher said, "Elderly people may be more sensitive to drugs' effects and less efficient at metabolising medications, leading to adverse events, which in turn lead to falls."
The study observed the effects of nine classes of drugs. It updated, expanded and analysed 22 international observational studies from 1996 to 2007 investigating falls among people aged 60 years and above, a university statement said.
The study included data on more than 79,000 participants and both prescription and over-the-counter medications.
