Physiotherapists' guidance is needed when people with vertebral fractures start exercise regimes

People with osteoporosis should not be afraid to exercise regularly, according a consensus statement appearing in the latest issue of the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

But, while exercise may help people with vertebral fractures to feel less pain, and improve their mobility and quality of life, it should, ideally, be accompanied by guidance from a physiotherapist to ensure correct posture and encourage a return to normal activities. 

Katherine Brooke-Wavell from the National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine at Loughborough University is listed as the first of the paper’s authors, with physiotherapists Susanne Arnold, Karen Barker and Julie Whitney being named as three of the 12 co-authors.

Dr Arnold is a research fellow at the University of Warwick who also represented AGILE, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy professional network for those working with older people. Karen Barker is based at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, University of Oxford, while Julie Whitney is based at the department of physiotherapy at King’s College London.