Wellness Wednesday: Preventing falls, fractures

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – University of Michigan Health-Sparrow recently hosted a sold-out “Senior Health Series” event focused specifically on healthy movements.

“Falls are a very big problem,” Dr. David So, MD, an orthopedic surgeon with University of Michigan Health-Sparrow, said. “One in four adults over 65 years will fall.”

He says there are 3.6 million emergency room visits each year in the United States related to falls.

“An opportunity to speak with our older community members, give them some tips, really stress the importance of [what] healthy movement and exercise is and what impact it can have on their quality of life,” Dr. So explained.

There are several things seniors can do to help minimize their risk of falling, and also, several ways to minimize the risk of fracture if they do end up falling.

“Exercise, you know, working on balance, things like that. So, you know, to help improve balance, you can do yoga, you can Tai Chi,” Dr. So said. “You should work on your heart strength, your cardiac capacity, so that includes aerobic exercises. On top of that, your body, your [skeletal] muscle, you can strengthen those muscles that will, in part, help improve your bone strength and quality.”

Orthopedic treatments have come a long way, too. About ten percent of our older population will have symptomatic arthritis. Many patients will benefit from joint replacement, which has made many advancements, including same-day surgery.

“Going home the same day as your operation. That way, you avoid possibly catching something in the hospital. You get the comfort of your own bed. You get, you know, home cooking and things like that, really to speed up your recovery,” Dr. So added.

Dr. So says U of M Health-Sparrow recognized the interest and the importance of getting this information out to community members, so there likely will be more topics covered in the near future as part of this health series.

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