In a study conducted by the Harvard Medical School, researchers discovered that hip pads, made from hard plastic and acetate foam, did little to prevent hip fractures, but rather seemed to increase such incidents.
In the study, nearly three-quarters of the subjects wore a pad on one hip made from hard plastic and acetate foam.
The planned two-year study was terminated four months early when the incidence of hip fractures among protected hips (3.1 percent) was higher than among unprotected hips (2.5 percent). The difference was deemed to be statistically insignificant.
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(Hat tip: Irochka!)