EFORT calls for prevention and better frameworks to keep people active

About 6,000 experts gathered in Geneva at the 17th EFORT Annual Congress to discuss the contributions orthopedics can make in an aging society, such as early childhood education programs that promote better body awareness and enthusiasm for exercise, according to a press release from EFORT.

“The effects of adverse early childhood environments, where children do not gain an enthusiasm for physical exercise and develop little awareness of their body, persist over a lifetime with negative impacts on health” Enric Cáceres, MD, PhD, FRC, president of EFORT and a professor at the University of Barcelona, said in the press release.

Enric Cáceres

He said, “Investments in more educational programs and in improvements to them results in significant returns for society, the health economy and the economy as a whole.”

EFORT also called for a move away from dependence on surgical intervention in favor of greater prevention. Although access for people with disabilities is being prioritized in many countries, safeguards against falls, which is another problem that affects an aging society, are not being implemented. Landlords often refuse to make access to stairs, lifts and apartments safe, and public transportation is frequently poorly equipped for the needs of individuals who have osteoporosis, according to the release.

Pierre Hoffmeyer

“Authorities need to provide areas where active elderly people are not at risk of falls,” Pierre Hoffmeyer, MD, former president of EFORT and professor at the University of Geneva, said. Hoffmeyer called for stakeholders and policymakers to do their part to make society a place where even the frailest individuals can move around safely.

Fracture repair and other orthopedic techniques have evolved, he noted.

“But the main goal for our society must be to prevent falls and fractures in the first place,” he said.

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