Women over 65 are more likely to die if they have a hip fracture than if they are diagnosed with breast cancer. This finding was presented by a team of investigators at the American Geriatric Society’s annual meeting.
In the study, women who had hip fractures tended to be older, better educated, have lower BMI (body mass index) i.e. they weren’t as heavy, decreased mental state and less weight changes since the age of 25 years than women with breast cancer.
Even after making adjustments for all these factors and a few others, the women with breast cancer still survived longer than those with hip fractures.
Hip fractures occur more frequently in older women who tend to have greater degree of osteoporosis. These findings reinforce the need to take osteoporosis prevention very seriously. Even after developing osteoporosis which is associated with the onset of menopause, women should be encouraged to take measures that can help reduce the severity of osteoporosis and the risk of having a hip fracture. A good example of one of these measures is weight-bearing exercise which increases muscle strength, co-ordination and flexibility which in turn would reduce the number of falls.
