Hip fracture in the elderly (90% occur after age 70) claims 250,000 victims/year in the U.S. and costs 6 to 12 billion dollars. Over 90% of cases result from fall-related hip impact in elderly persons with brittle bones. Medical therapy, fall prevention and exercise are only partially protective. Impact force from a fall can be absorbed by padded underwear. We will develop comfortable, padded underwear that can be concealed beneath outer clothing. Comfort,my concealment, and ease of application are essential to ensuring frequent use. We will use drop weight testing to develop a pad design that will absorb in excess of 90% of impact force from falls from standing. We win also test absorptive properties for resistance to temperature, ultraviolet light, drying in air, long term use, and frequent washing. Effectiveness will be tested on volunteer human failers and impact forces measured. Acceptability by elderly at risk for hip fracture will be assessed. Underwear to protect the hips of the incontinent will be produced and tested. A unique pad implantable sensor that counts falls, measures their mtensity, and stores data will be perfected for Phase II efficacy trials of hip fracture prevention. Inexpensive hip padding marketed to the elderly may reduce hip fracture incidence.Awardee's statement of the potential commercial applications of the research:Women over 60 and men over 70 are at risk for hip fracture. There are over 30,000,000 persons in this age group in the U.S. and they constitute a potential market. We will sell padded underwear directly to the elderly, to nursing homes and hospitals, to the elderly through their primary care physicians, orthopedists, and neurologists. We believe the padded underwear can be sold at a price between $60 and $100 and will be an affordable strategy to reduce fracture rates.National Institute on Aging (NIA)
