Forearm fractures in Malmö, Sweden. Changes in the incidence occurring during the 1950s, 1980s and 1990s.

Between the 1950s and the 1980s, the incidence of forearm fractures increased in the city of Malmö. We have now collected data on all forearm fractures during 1991 and 1992 and compared them with previously published data from 1953-1957 and 1980-1981. During the 1990s, 1314 individuals with wrist fractures and 125 with shaft fractures were recorded. In men, we found a twofold increase in the standardized morbidity ratio (SMR) in the 1990s, compared with the 1950s. The 1990s, compared with the 1980s, showed a reduction in SMR to 0.85. In women, a comparison between the 1990s and the 1950s revealed a slight reduction in SMR, 0.9 during the 1990s. Comparison of the 1990s with the 1980s revealed a reduction in SMR to 0.7 after the age of 70 years. In individuals 60 years and older, we found a fivefold increase in the incidence of fractures of the shaft of the forearm, when comparing the 1990s with the 1980s. In women, the increase in incidence of wrist fractures appears to have been interrupted, when comparing the years 1991-1992 and 1980-1981. Among men, the incidence of wrist fractures appears to be increasing, even after the 1980s. The reduction in incidence among women may partly be explained by warmer winters during 1991-1992.