More than 14.2 million people worldwide and 280 ,000 people in the US experience a hip fracture each year. The median 1-year mortality rate after a hip fracture is 22%; approximately 42% to 71% of hip fracture patients regain their prefracture level of basic activities of daily living within 6 months.
Approximately 2 hip fractures occur every minute in the United States (approximately 27 per minute worldwide). Most hip fractures occur among older adults as a result of accidental falls. Hip fractures are uncommon before age 70 years, but the incidence progressively increases after age 70 years. Lifetime risks of hip fracture are 22.9% in women and 10.7% in men at age 50. At age 80, the risks are 19.3% and 9.1%, respectively. Among 66 ,746 patients with hip fracture, 11, 899 (20%) died during 12-month follow-up. Hip fractures cause impaired mobility, pain, and substantial health care costs.
Although falling is a major risk factor for hip fracture, standard diagnostic tests to assess the risk of falling are not available. Fall risk assessment by primary care clinicians is recommended annually for adults 65 years and older or whenever a patient experiences an acute fall, according to the American Geriatrics Society and British Geriatrics Society (AGS/BGS) guideline.
After a hip fracture, approximately 20.1% of patients require long-term nursing facility care and 6.6% become newly eligible for Medicaid or for a low-income subsidy under Medicare Part D. Approximately 25.5% of adults who experience a hip fracture have another fracture within the subsequent year. Hip fractures in adults 65 years and older are often associated with declines in physical, emotional, and social functioning, along with reduced health-related quality of life.
More than 95% of hip fractures occur after a fall and present with hip pain and an externally rotated leg. Plain radiographs are at least 90% sensitive for hip fractures. Only approximately 1% of patients with a likely hip fracture who do not have a fracture on radiograph but for whom the clinician suspects a fracture based on pain and immobility should undergo computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging.
Hip fractures are classified as either intracapsular or extracapsular, depending on whether the fracture is within or outside of the fibrous capsule that surrounds the hip joint. Intracapsular hip fractures include femoral neck fractures (34% of all hip fractures) and femoral head fractures (rare), whereas extracapsular fractures include intertrochanteric (48% of all hip fractures) and subtrochanteric fractures (5.8% of all hip fractures); 11.8% of hip fractures could not be classified.
Most hip fractures require hospitalization and surgical intervention. In a systematic review of 28 prospective observational studies involving 31,242 patients, surgery within the first 48 hours after hip fracture was associated with 20% lower mortality.
If someone else’s negligence may have caused you or a loved one to suffer a hip fracture, or there was negligence in diagnosing or treating a hip fracture, you should promptly contact a medical malpractice lawyer near you who may investigate your hip fracture malpractice claim for you, and represent you or your loved one in a hip fracture malpractice case, if appropriate.
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