Biomechanical analysis of the cause and prevention of fall-related injuries

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Falls are the number one cause of injuries and injury-related deaths in older adults, and biomechanics research is essential for the development of improved strategies to prevent these injuries. Any fall from standing height possesses sufficient energy to fracture the hip or cause a debilitating head injury, and the effectiveness of "safe landing" responses is the most common factor separating benign from catastrophic falls. With aging, these intrinsic responses may fail, and wearable protective gear (or compliant flooring) may be life-saving. Our research addresses the need for improved research in these areas. During the past period the support, we developed "real-life" laboratories in two long-term care facilities in the Vancouver area, which support the ongoing development of a library of video recordings of real-life falls in older adults, and serve as test beds for the development and evaluation of our interventions. The work proposed in this NSERC Discovery Grant renewal pursues new and important complementary lines of enquiry, by addressing the following specific aims: (1) To test the hypothesis that there are differences in the mechanics of falls between young and older adults, including the protective responses that arise during fall initiation and descent, and the configuration and velocity of the body segments at impact; (2) To test the hypothesis that the mechanics of falls in young adults associate with contextual variables (training, pre-planning, and utilization of specific fall arrest strategies); and (3) To test the hypothesis that the biomechanical effectiveness of hip protectors, and user compliance in wearing these devices, depends on pad geometry and material properties. Our work under Aims 1 and 2 involves the first analysis and comparison of fall mechanics in young and older adults, and should identify new and important opportunities for fall injury prevention. Our work on hip protector design (Aim 3) should guide improved product development and marketing, by identifying produce characteristics which optimize biomechanical performance and public utilization of this technology.