The global burden of fragility fractures – what are the differences, and where are the gaps

Abstract

The current burden of fragility fractures is enormous, and it is set to increase rapidly in the coming decades as humankind enters a new demographic era. The purpose of this review is to consider, in different settings:• The human and economic toll of fragility fractures.• Risk factors for fragility fractures.• Current acute management of fragility fractures.• Current care gaps in both secondary and primary fracture prevention.A summary of global, regional, and national initiatives to improve the quality of care is provided, in addition to proposals for the research agenda. Systematic approaches to improve the acute care, rehabilitation and prevention of fragility fractures need to be developed and implemented rapidly and at scale in high-, middle- and low-income countries throughout the world. This must be an essential component of our response to the ageing of the global population during the remainder of the current United Nations – World Health Organization “Decade of Healthy Ageing”.