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Explanation and Causes:

A hip fracture is a fracture on the upper part of the femur that leads into the pelvic bone. Two parts of the femur can break to constitute a hip fracture. One can happen in the neck of the femur just below the rounded head of the bone that sits in the pelvic bone. The other is called an intertrochanteric break which is located just below the neck of the femur. From any approach a hip fracture will take some lifestyle changes at least for some period of time. The risk of hip fracture increases with age as the bones start to lose density little bits at time. Women have are at 2 to 3 times higher risk of hip fracture than men due to the loss of estrogen and therefore a faster loss of bone density. In people of 65 years old or older, falls are the primary cause of hip fractures.

Other causes include:

• Auto accidents
• Athletics
• Osteoporosis
• Osteomalacia
• Bone tumors

Symptoms:

• Severe hip and groin pain
• Bruising
• Swelling
• One leg is shorter than the other
• The fractured leg will turn outward involuntarily

Diagnosis and Tests:

• X-ray
• MRI
• CT scan
• Bone scan

Treatment:

Most hip fractures require some surgery, especially in older patients where pins or screws are necessary for stabilization. As soon after surgery or injury, some movement is helpful to prevent blood clots, pneumonia, and bed sores. Physical therapy is almost always needed to some degree or another. The recovery is long and sometimes painful. Sometimes it requires a full year to make a full recovery.