Hip protector

Recent developments include the use of double-sided adhesive films that are breathable and more comfortable to wear than specialised pants.

[3] A number of reviews have found that hip protectors are cost-effective, particularly among residents of care homes and for long-stay patients in hospital[4] A previous review found that the effect for preventing hip fracture among nursing home residents was small and not effective among community dwelling elderly individuals.

[6] However, acceptance and long-term compliance towards them has historically been quite low,[5] mainly because of discomfort, dislike of their appearance by the person wearing it, and disagreement about fracture risk.

Better independent testing procedures developed by Professor Julian Minns have established a reliable baseline for impact absorption performance.

[9] However this research predates the introduction of hip protector pads in 2011/2012 using modern non-Newtonian materials, such as D3o that absorb around 75% of the impact, typically twice that of previous devices that used soft materials such as textiles or foam pads in an airtight bag, but comparable to the best of the energy-shunting devices, which have now largely disappeared from the market because of a slight tendency to cause pelvic fractures when the energy is transferred[10] Another study showed that hip protectors' design and mechanical properties vary drastically among commercially available hip protectors.