Could skydiving help the old avoid hip fractures?

13 April 2012

Fall science: Skydivers' landing skills could aid elderly

Skydiving might seem the worst possible thing to do if you want to avoid a hip fracture. But a new study shows elderly people who learn to land like a skydiver could slash their risk of a fracture by up to 70 per cent.

Experts at the University of Michigan who studied how the frail and elderly tumble when they break a hip found many 'stiffened' their whole body in preparation for impact.

This puts a huge amount of force on the hip joint, which for many people may already be weakened by osteoporosis.

The latest research found parachutists' method of rolling over reduced hip impact just as effectively whether someone has jumped from a plane or tripped on a kerb.

The technique involves crouching and leaning so that the outside of the leg hits the ground first and then the patient rolls on to their backside. This reduced the amount of force on the hip joint by 25 per cent.


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