Martial Arts May Reduce Risks of Fractures

It is generally accepted that osteoporosis is a well-established risk factor for fall-related hip fractures. Brenda Groen, from The Sint Maartenskliniek (The Netherlands), and colleagues assessed whether training in martial arts (MA) fall techniques might be beneficial to prevent hip fractures in persons with osteoporosis. Conducting the assessments on young adults, engaging the most stringent safety protocols, and extrapolating the resultant data to the osteoporotic older population, the team reports that “[martial arts] fall training [is] expected to be safe for persons with osteoporosis if appropriate safety measures are taken: during the training persons with osteoporosis should wear hip protectors that could attenuate the maximum hip impact force by at least 65%, perform the fall exercises on a thick mattress, and avoid forward fall exercises from a standing position.” They submit that: “A modified [martial arts] fall training might be useful to reduce hip fracture risk in persons with osteoporosis. “