Il progetto di ricerca Guardian Angel®: risultati preliminari

Introduction Osteoporosis is a very common disease in the elderly. The major complication of osteoporosis is fragility fracture. A research project called Guardian Angel® was developed to improve, through tailored education, self-care and quality of life in osteoporotic women who have had a fragility fracture. This article describes the preliminary descriptive results of the Guardian Angel® version 1.0 research project. Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out. A convenience sample was enrolled and different assessment tools were used. The sample includes postmenopausal women, hospitalized for a fragility fracture. Results The study involved 316 patients. The average age was 76 years. In 69,94% of women the fracture occurred at home during ordinary activities, as doing housework. Among risk factors investigated, 16,54% of sample had a family history of osteoporosis, 55% was affected by comorbidity, 62% did not practice physical activity and 71,17% referred back pain. Conclusions A clinical care profile of patients was highlighted. These patients can be included in programs of therapeutic education in order to improve adherence to medication and lifestyle and reduce risk factors. Further studies are needed to investigate also different healthcare settings such as outpatient.