Athletes use space-age padded underwear

As competition heats up on U.S. fields, courts and rinks, athletes are turning to a new layer of defense to protect against injuries -- padded underwear.

NBA superstar Dwyane Wade is one of many collegiate or professional athletes who wear a new form of protective padding that's integrated directly into compression apparel -- the underwear many athletes wear underneath their uniforms.

Patented HexPad technology is used to enhance athletic performance and protect against injury by small, hexagonal shaped pads, which are permanently bonded to compression apparel and other types of protective equipment, such as knee, elbow and forearm pads.

The pads are designed to conform, flex and stretch with the contours of the body in ways previous generations of pads never have.

As an athlete runs, jumps, dives, twists, slides or spins, the HexPads move with the body, acting as a second skin.

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