Hip Airbags Aim To Save Seniors’ Lives

January 19, 2018

Numbers show 1 in 4 seniors who break their hips die within a year. It’s one of the most common and devastating injuries among the elderly.

Recently, CBS13 profiled a product out of France aimed at breaking those falls. Now, a similar airbag technology is taking shape in the U.S., and it’s being tested out by a group of seniors in Carmichael, and they say they’re happy to be part of the solution.

Being active is a big part of Yen Lu Wong’s life, but at 75 years old, the retired dance professor realizes the risks that come with it.

“Falling could really change our lives,” said Wong.

She is one of about a dozen residents at Eskaton Village Carmichael retirement community helping to soften the blow.

It’s called Active Protection and is a wearable smart belt, similar to one featured at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month, that deploys airbags when a fall is detected. Read more.