Hip Fractures - The Consequences Of Osteoporosis: Osteoporosis

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Hip fractures

About one in five osteoporosis-related fractures occur at the hip. Typically, these are the most serious of all osteoporotic fractures. The injury often has devastating effects — stealing mobility and independence. About two-thirds of people who break a hip permanently lose some of their ability to perform ordinary daily activities, such as dressing themselves or rising from a chair. Even walking across a room may be impossible. A year after the fracture, 40% of those who break a hip are no longer able to walk without assistance. These changes in mobility and daily functioning can make it necessary to seek home health care or to move to a facility that can provide care. The Surgeon General reported that nearly one in five people who break a hip end up in nursing homes — a result that, according to one study, many seniors find less appealing than death.

While hip fractures seldom directly cause a person to die, they can indirectly lead to death by triggering a downward spiral in health. Approximately 24% of people ages 50 and older die within the year after breaking a hip, often from complications, such as pneumonia or blood clots, that result from the fracture itself or surgery.

Hip fractures usually involve the neck or intertrochanteric region (see Figure 5) of the thighbone, but breaks can occur in the pelvis. The outcome usually depends on the state of the bone and the condition of the patient.

Figure 5: Common hip fractures Each year there are 300,000 hip fractures in the United States. Fracturing a hip can have serious consequences. Nearly a quarter of those who suffer a hip fracture at age 50 or older will die within a year of the injury. Most hip fractures occur at the neck of the femur or thighbone (A) or at the intertrochanteric region (B).

At best, the breaks are temporarily immobilizing, requiring confinement to bed or a wheelchair. Surgery is usually needed but may not be feasible because of other disorders, such as heart or lung disease, which increase the risk for complications following an operation. As a result, the damaged bone often heals badly, resulting in permanent disability.

Last updated:	January 23, 2007