Study title

Oslo has one of the highest numbers of hip fractures in the world. Based on this, we conducted a patient control study in this population, to study risk factors for hip fractures among elderly people living at home. 246 hip fracture patients admitted at two Oslo hospitals over a one-year period were compared with the same number of people in a control group. We found an increased risk of hip fractures in thin individuals, in people with self-reported weight loss during the past year due to poor appetite, in people with low food intake, in inactive persons and in people with low muscle strength. We found no correlation between calcium intake and hip fracture, while the hip fracture group had lower vitamin D intake than the control group. Furthermore, the level of education in the hip fracture group was lower than in the control group, and a larger proportion were smokers. In conclusion, we found the same in the risk factor pattern for throat fractures in Oslo as previously reported from populations with lower rates of fracture. In addition, this survey indicates that low food intake among the elderly is an important risk factor for hip fractures.