Hip Protectors Prevent Fractures

Hip protectors can prevent fractures . . and death among those with Osteoporosis.

In the United State, for example,  there are more than 300,000 hip fractures each year and of those who break a hip, some 45,000 to 100,000 die within a year from complications that arise after their surgery ....or from immobility.

NOTE: The United Kingdom reports some 70,000 such fractures per year. Europe has an even higher rate - with more fractures in Northern Europe than in the South.  Australia and much of Asia have about as many  per person and North America  and parts of Africa and North East South America has the fewest incidences of all.

Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3421108/#!po=25.0000

Research in Germany showed that hip protectors  prevent fractures

A "study of German nursing home residents reported a more than 40 percent reduction" among those who wore these devices.

This study covered 49 nursing homes in the Hamburg area. In 25 of the nursing home, residents were given a single lecture and some training about the value of wearing these protectors. And residents were offered free devices. 118 of a total of 459 residents who attended the lectures and training decided to wear the hip protectors.

Residents in the other 24 homes did not get this lecture or training. Of these, only 40 of 483 residents decided to wear the protectors when they were offered. (So education counts!)

Records of hip fracture were kept for 14 months. There were 21 fractures among the 459 residents who got the lecture and training. There were 42 fractures among the 483 residents who did not get a lecture or training. And "The number of hospital admissions in the protector-wearing group was 121, compared to 211 in the unprotected group. Those who wore the protectors saw their risk of fracture drop by 43 percent."

What appears central is educating people about the value of these protectors for their hips so that they will use them.

More studies

".... an ongoing analysis of randomized trials worldwide by Dr. M.J. Parker of Peterborough District Hospital in Cambridgeshire, England, found a two-thirds reduction of fractures" for those wearing these devices!

In Finland  a study  in 2000 that "reported an 84 percent decrease in hip fractures over a prolonged period" among those wearing  protectors.

A Dutch study showed less impressive numbers. 561 older Amsterdam residents who were at high risk were selected for study. Of these, 276 wore the protectors and 285 did not. During the next 70 weeks, 18 of the people assigned to the hip-protector group suffered fractures. 20 of those assigned to the group not wearing the protectors suffered fractures. (Most researchers  see this as a negligible difference.)

What is interesting is that the devices are seldom used in the United States. Some believe that this is because most insurance  does not reimburse for them. But it could be that paying for these out of pocket might save individuals and families much pain and inconvenience.....and even prolong life.

Pam Holliday says: "The evidence is fairly strong that they can reduce the number of hip fractures, and they seem to be cost-effective . . . The hope that their use will increase has been bolstered by the appearance of more products", she adds. "While only two kinds of  protector were available a few years ago, there now are six kinds on the market."  See the many types at Amazon:

Sources: Gabriele Meyer, research fellow, University of Hamburg, Germany; Stefan Solvell, president, E-Pill, Wellesley, Mass.; Pam Holliday, Research Associate, Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Center, Toronto; Jan. 11, 2003, British Medical Journal - also Ed Edelson, a Health Scout News Reporter