Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 24, 2026
10:30
Sequential In vivo Imaging of Osteogenic Stem/Progenitor Cells During Fracture Repair
Published on: May 23, 2014
11.1K
Fracture repair in the elderly: Clinical and experimental considerations
E G Meinberg1, D Clark1, K R Miclau1
1UCSF/ZSFG Orthopaedic Trauma Institute, UCSF Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Trauma Institute, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Injury
|May 28, 2019
Summary
Elderly bone fracture healing is delayed by aging, impacting cells and blood supply. Further research into age-related healing can improve treatments for older patients.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Orthopedics
- Regenerative Medicine
Background:
- Fractures in the elderly are a growing socioeconomic burden.
- Aging is linked to delayed fracture healing, but clinical data isolating aging's effects is limited.
- Comorbidities common in the elderly often complicate fracture healing assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the impact of aging on the biological components of fracture repair.
- To understand how aging affects cellular and molecular mechanisms of bone healing.
- To identify potential therapeutic targets for improving fracture repair in elderly individuals.
Main Methods:
- Review of basic science research on aging and bone healing.
- Analysis of cellular, extracellular matrix, vascular, and molecular factors.
- Synthesis of data on age-related changes in fracture repair components.
Main Results:
- Aging negatively affects fracture repair cells, extracellular matrix, and blood supply.
- Molecular signaling pathways and their receptors involved in healing are impaired by aging.
- These age-related biological changes likely contribute to poorer clinical outcomes in elderly patients.
Conclusions:
- Aging significantly impacts all fundamental aspects of bone fracture healing.
- Understanding these age-related deficits is crucial for developing new therapeutic strategies.
- Novel treatments are needed to enhance bone repair and improve outcomes for elderly patients with fractures.
Related Concept Videos
01:27Fractures: Bone Repair
5.2K
Treatment for a fracture is based on the type of break, the bone affected, and the patient's age.
Minor fractures with no bone displacement are treated by immobilizing the fractured bone using a cast or splint. However, in the case of fractures with displaced bones, the broken bones are repositioned before immobilization to ensure successful healing without deformation and loss of function. The realignment of fractured bone ends is performed through a process called reduction. If the...
Minor fractures with no bone displacement are treated by immobilizing the fractured bone using a cast or splint. However, in the case of fractures with displaced bones, the broken bones are repositioned before immobilization to ensure successful healing without deformation and loss of function. The realignment of fractured bone ends is performed through a process called reduction. If the...
5.2K
01:36Mismatch Repair
43.6K
Overview
43.6K
02:25Overview of DNA Repair
33.5K
In order to be passed through generations, genomic DNA must be undamaged and error-free. However, every day, DNA in a cell undergoes several thousand to a million damaging events by natural causes and external factors. Ionizing radiation such as UV rays, free radicals produced during cellular respiration, and hydrolytic damage from metabolic reactions can alter the structure of DNA. Damages caused include single-base alteration, base dimerization, chain breaks, and cross-linkage.
Chemically...
Chemically...
33.5K
01:22Design Consideration
560
Designing a structure involves a series of considerations, primarily the material's ultimate strength, calculated through tests that measure changes under increased force until the material reaches its breaking point or limit. The ultimate load, where the material breaks, is divided by its original cross-sectional area, resulting in the ultimate normal stress or strength. The ultimate shearing stress is another significant factor taken into account.
The factor of safety is another key...
The factor of safety is another key...
560
01:54Base Excision Repair
26.1K
One of the common DNA damages is the chemical alteration of single bases by alkylation, oxidation, or deamination. The altered bases cause mispairing and strand breakage during replication. This type of damage causes minimal change to the DNA double helix structure and can be repaired by the base excision repair (BER) pathways. BER corrects damaged DNA sequences by removing the damaged base and restoring the original base sequence using the complementary strand as a template.
The first step of...
The first step of...
26.1K
01:08Nucleotide Excision Repair
40.6K
Overview
40.6K