Outcome of falls in women: endogenous factors associated with fracture

Thirty-six women who had sustained soft-tissue injury after a simple fall were compared with age-matched controls who had suffered a fracture in a similar fall. Subjects aged 45-70 years who had suffered a fracture had significantly lower bone density in the proximal femur and lower grip strength than their controls. No differences in femoral bone density or grip strength were found between the two groups at ages over 70, but the women with fractures were on average of greater body weight than the no-fracture group. Bone mineral density declined more rapidly with age and was less closely correlated with body weight and time since menopause in the no-fracture group than among the women with a fracture. We conclude that the determinants of fracture vary with age; low bone density and low muscle strength are associated with fracture below the age of 70 but not at higher ages.