Grant: Team Grant: Bone Health

A broken wrist is the most common broken bone. Younger people, particularly men, are likely to break their wrists through traumatic sports or work accidents with substantial force. Most broken wrists occur in older individuals. Women over 50 have a 15% chance of getting a broken wrist. In 90% of cases, it is caused by a fall from level ground. Some of these people are at risk of future bone health problems, including arthritis and osteoporosis. Some people become very afraid of falling again and stop many of their normal physical activities which can lead to poor health. Some people develop permanent pain. All of these problems can be managed with more intensive investigation and treatment. It can be difficult to get the broken bones back in their normal position during the healing process and it is unknown which surgical techniques work best. A team is needed to develop a pathway to ensure that every individual gets the right type of investigations and treatment. In the lab, bone specimens and computerized models will be used to determine to what extent bones must be realigned to prevent future joint problems such as arthritis. Studies on patients will determine which factors place people at risk of having bad outcomes. We will develop a screening tool to allow doctors and therapists to determine which people are at risk so they get the right investigations and treatments. The team will also investigate methods to ensure that doctors and therapists use these screening tools. The team's scientists have expertise in modeling fractures in the laboratory, and conducting studies on patients to identify risk. The team also includes experts in moving new research into clinical practice. This will ensure that patients with wrist fractures received the new approach to evaluating and fixing their fracture, as well as the methods to ensure that their future bone health and overall physical activity are protected.