Reduce Your Risks and Protect Those Hips

Falls are the leading cause of injury-related hospitalization amongst Canadian seniors. A fall that bruises a hip at age 20 can shatter it at 70 putting physical limitations on an individual that are often hard to overcome. Protecting your hips reduces the likelihood of injury.

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada’s 2014 Seniors’ Falls Report, almost 30% of seniors fall each year with over one third of these fall-related hospitalizations associated with a hip fracture. In fact:

‣ Less than half (44%) of people discharged from hospital for a hip fracture return home
‣ 10% go to another hospital
‣ 27% go to rehabilitation care
‣ 17% go to long-term care facilities

Osteoporosis Canada estimates that 80% of all fractures in people aged 50+ are caused by Osteoporosis. Fractures from Osteoporosis are more common than heart attack, stroke and breast cancer combined. Alarmingly, studies say one in three hip fracture patients re-fracture at one year and over 1 in 2 will suffer another fracture within 5 years.

What You Can Do

Protect Yourself

One way to protect yourself or a loved one in the event of a fall is to wear a Hip Protector. Many studies with seniors have shown hip protectors prevent critical hip incidents. In fact, OMNI Healthcare used Synergy Hip Protectors in a clinical study that tracked falls and critical incidents in long-term care residences over an 18-month period.

At the completion of the study, 205 falls were reported in 17 OMNI Healthcare retirement homes across Ontario. Of these falls, 40 resulted in a critical incident requiring a hospital transfer:

‣ 24 residents who fell wearing Synergy Hip Protectors showed no evidence of hip injuries.
‣ The other 16 residents not wearing Synergy Hip Protectors all suffered a hip fracture and two residents later died.

Protection with Benefits

1. Pain Relief – Synergy Hip Protectors give more relief than compression alone due to the Far Infrared Ray (FIR) enhancing materials. Wearing Synergy Hip Protectors at night when pain is often at its worst can help you sleep. The FIR minerals woven into the fabric are locally absorbed into the deep tissue, activating water molecules in the blood and increasing circulation. This leads to decreased inflammation in the hip joint, particularly well suited for those with osteoarthritis.

2. Comfort – Synergy Hip Protectors are extremely comfortable, easy to put on and discreet, all factors that contribute to improved compliance at home and in long term care. In addition, Synergy protectors offer excellent compression, which is recommended as a means of reinforcing hip joints, and preventing further deterioration, especially during pre and post-operative care.

3. Better Mobility – Hip protectors help with balance and mobility, particularly important for seniors experiencing a loss of balance, dementia or frailty. Nurses participating in the Omni Healthcare clinical pilot with Synergy Hip Protectors observed that residents wearing these hip supports had fewer aches and pains in their joints and walked with more stability, decreasing the risk of falling.

4. Washable and Antibacterial – Hip protectors have come a long way, both in comfort, wear ability and design. Synergy Hip Protectors are infused with Bamboo so extremely soft, breathable, cool and comfortable any time of year. Synergy Hip Protectors are also naturally antibacterial, hypoallergenic and deodorizing so there is no odour and can be washed easily. They also work very well with incontinence products.

Hip Protectors are a simple and effective way to reduce hip injuries and age safely.

Synergy Hip Protectors received the Ontario Long Term Care (OLTC) award for Quality and Innovation and can be found in many Shoppers Drug Mart locations.

For relevant news and special offers:

Find us on Facebook          Follow us on Twitter          Visit us at www.synergyfir.com