in Silvia Turin
The explanation lies in the particular conformation of the bones of the human body which are very resistant: the direction counts more than the energy of the impact. In addition, a trained body “resists” better, but you also need a lot of luck
The wait is over: and he did it in the best possible way. The medical tests on the state of health of Francesco Bagnaia — the Italian Ducati rider, reigning MotoGP world champion, who was the victim of a terrible accident in the race on Sunday 3 September in Barcelona. — ruled out leg fractures.
An outcome that had been anticipated by the words of Dr. Angel Charte, head of the MotoGP paddock: “The tests will tell us if the femur and tibia have any injuries, but with these first tests we have not found any deformities”, he said shortly after the fall of the leader of the championship standings.
Il driver was run over on the track
from the motorcycle of a pursuer, Binder, after falling. The vehicle passed over his leg at great speed. How was it possible that Bagnaia came out of the accident without breaking his legs?
When bones don’t break
We asked Cesare Faldini, full professor at the University of Bologna and director of the First Orthopedic Clinic at the Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute in Bologna, how it is possible that in some cases bones do not break after such serious accidents.
«Of course, it is possible: and it is determined by the conformation of our bones – explains the specialist to Corriere Salute -: the internal structure of the bones (the Haversian system) resembles micro-arches; if the impact force acts according to the orientation of these arcs it is «discharged» and the bone does not break, if it impacts in a different direction, the bone fractures».
Bones bear heavy loads
«The bones are very robust and resist loads potentially greater than 15 -20 times the body weight – adds Faldini -. When you do a normal jump, the moment you land, the bone supports up to 6-8 times your body weight, yet you don’t break your bones with every jump. This is because energy discharges along these lines of force. If the bike, passing over the rider, has created a very strong impact, but directed according to the physiological load lines, the bone may very well have resisted. Obviously there is a huge component of luck. Sometimes I can fall while riding my moped at 40 km/h and still fracture myself».
The difference in a trained body
Therefore, the direction of the kinetic force counts, but not only. Beyond the materials used for the motorcyclists’ suits which are certainly designed to reduce shocks, there is also a personal component: «Trained subjects such as a pilot can be with exercise strengthen these bone channels – Faldini specifies – . A sedentary lifestyle, on the other hand, causes the channels to be reabsorbed. Sportsmen or less sedentary people risk less in accidental falls.
Final consideration: «It’s not just the bone: the tissues that surround it can also be damaged very seriously after an accident. The fracture is not the only indicator of the severity of the trauma: there are tendons, muscles, nerves, arteries, veins (and other organs as well). When the trauma is serious, subsequent observation in specialized centers is essential, also to monitor any serious complications of the injured limb that go beyond the fractures», concludes the expert.
September 3, 2023 (change September 3, 2023 | 19:01)
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