Prevention of hip fractures

The effort to identify elderly people at high risk of hip fracture can reasonably focus on patients who are prone to falling (identified by several criteria, including a history of falling) and perhaps those who are likely to be the most osteopenic. Efforts at treatment must be individualized. Increased use of estrogens by women now going through menopause may improve the statistics on hip fracture, beginning 10 to 20 years from now. Meanwhile, the tailoring of interventions in elderly people to prevent falls, to counter osteoporosis, and to identify and treat correctable causes of osteopenia may produce a more immediate improvement in the statistics.