![\"Hip](\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2016\/03\/Hip-Fracture-Symptoms-and-Recovery-350x293.png\")
<\/h1>\n<\/h1>\nFor most of your life, a simple slip and fall leads to some discomfort, a few bruises, and maybe a bit of embarrassment (based on who\u2019s around to see). As a senior, it can bring about much bigger consequences. Every year about <\/span>250,000 seniors<\/a><\/strong> have to be hospitalized due to hip fractures, almost all of which occur when a senior falls. <\/span><\/p>\n You probably already have some idea that a broken hipbone is something to fear \u2013 <\/span>80% of senior women<\/a><\/strong> have said they\u2019d rather be dead than stuck in a nursing home with a broken hip. Yikes! It can be bad, but it doesn\u2019t have to be worse-than-death level bad. <\/span><\/p>\n Hip fracture is another way to say \u201cbroken hip.\u201d You know where your hip is located physically, that\u2019s one of the early lessons kids are taught in school, but you might not think much of the bones behind the skin. Your hip is the ball-and-socket joint where your femur and pelvic bone meet. A hip fracture occurs when any part of the femur breaks. <\/span><\/p>\n A hip fracture itself is painful, but the biggest problems a broken hip will cause for seniors have to do with the healing process.<\/span><\/p>\n Hip fractures almost always require surgery to treat, and surgery brings with it more dangers for seniors than for the general population. The <\/span>effects of anesthesia <\/a><\/strong>are heightened for seniors. Going under can cause serious side effects, especially for residents of nursing homes. Routine surgeries can also commonly cause infections and other complications in seniors that bring them back to the hospital for <\/span>re-admittance within a month<\/a><\/strong>. <\/span><\/p>\n Even if all goes well with the surgery, seniors will have a period of extremely limited mobility while they\u2019re healing. Everyone\u2019s familiar with the regular advice to get plenty of exercise \u2013 the results of the immobility that hip fractures cause provide us with a clear picture of just how meaningful that advice is.<\/span><\/p>\n Being stuck in bed (or on your couch) can lead to very unpleasant day-to-day problems, including:<\/span><\/p>\n Those will all make your days worse, but the lack of movement can also contribute to some serious issues that cause death in the long term, such as:<\/span><\/p>\n When your doctor encourages you to get some movement and exercise into your life ASAP after breaking a hip, they mean it. Women in their late 60\u2019s are over <\/span>five times as likely to die<\/a><\/strong> within a year of breaking a hip as their peers, and women in their 70\u2019s are twice as likely. It\u2019s not the fractured hip itself that kills them, it\u2019s the worsening of diseases they already had, like heart disease and diabetes, due to mobility issues.<\/span><\/p>\n As you age, your bones get weaker. This is especially true for women who disproportionately suffer from osteoporosis in their later years \u2013 20% of 70-year old women are believed to have it, with the percentage going up as age increases. Seniors also experience more difficulty with balance and vision, two factors that, especially if combined, make falls more likely.<\/span><\/p>\n Seniors are therefore both more likely to fall<\/strong><\/a> to begin with, and more likely to break a bone anytime a fall occurs. And, as already discussed, the elderly are also at increased risk of problems that may occur during treatment and recovery. <\/span><\/p>\n Lest that all sound hopeless, there are seniors that bounce back after a hip fracture. And plenty who manage to live out their senior years without ever experiencing a fall to begin with. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The moment you sense you may have a hip fracture \u2013 and the pain will give you a pretty good head\u2019s up to what\u2019s going on \u2013 you need to get to the hospital ASAP. When your hip is broken, it\u2019s likely you won\u2019t be able to walk at all due to the pain and that you\u2019ll experience some inflammation and bruising in your hip area. You may also notice that one leg appears shorter than the other.<\/span><\/p>\n When you get to the doctor, they\u2019ll most likely recommend that you have surgery on your hip within the first 24 hours. In most cases, doctors will set you up for an arthroplasty, which involves replacing the damaged parts of the joint (sometimes all of it) with artificial parts. <\/span><\/p>\n After the surgery, most seniors will spend the first few days of recovery in the hospital, with the recommended physical therapy starting within a couple of days. The length of recovery varies considerably for different people, and in some cases a hip fracture is the inciting factor for lengthy stays at rehabilitation centers or nursing homes.<\/span><\/p>\n Whatever happens, try to work movement and exercise into your days as soon as possible and keep up with it. It won\u2019t be comfortable, but it well may make the difference to living beyond that first year after your break. <\/span><\/p>\n If you get a hip fracture, it is possible to move past the treatment phase and back to normal life. But clearly it\u2019s better never to get a hip fracture to being with, if you can pull it off. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The most important preventative steps you can take are all designed to ward off osteoporosis:<\/span><\/p>\nWhat is a Hip Fracture?<\/h2>\n
The Risks Associated with Hip Fractures in the Elderly<\/h2>\n
Surgery<\/b><\/h3>\n
Immobility<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
Why Are Hip Fractures Common in the Elderly?<\/h2>\n
Treatments for a Broken Hip<\/h2>\n
What You Can Do To Prevent a Hip Fracture<\/h2>\n
\n