The top of your femur and part of your pelvic bone meet to form your hip. Symptoms of a fractured femur can include severe pain, bleeding, deformity of the leg, tissue swelling, and being unable to move your leg. The leg has three bones that can fracture the femur the thighbone. Oct 11, 2016 a femur stress fracture is a hairline fracture of the femur thigh bone. I am so sorry re your broken femur but you are not alone.
Your thighbone femur is the longest and strongest bone in your body. Poor alignment of the femur bone may also be painful. There are different types of fractures and symptoms include pain, swelling, and discoloration of the skin around the injured area. A broken femur can be an extremely painful and inconvenient occurrence. If an xray shows an arm or leg bone is likely to break, surgery may be done to put a metal rod may be put through the weak part of the bone to help support it. Managing symptoms of bone metastases american cancer. Pain may come on gradually as a dull ache, which intensifies if a bending force is applied to the femur. Hip fractures are among the most common types of broken bones, and once over the age of 65, a broken hip is the most common reason why people need fracture surgery. Said one was to check for infection and to clean the incision site, ditto the second procedure. After a pelvic fracture, there may be injuries to organs within the pelvic ring such as the intestines, kidneys, bladder or genitals. I fractured my femur in 1976 at 17 and had a steel rod placed in it. Pain, swelling, tenderness and bruising in your lower leg. How to treat a femur fracture and other things you need to.
The tibia which is also known as the shin bone belongs to the group of long bones of the body with the other long bones being the femur, fibula, and the humerus. Within six months after that 20 months after the injury, i was completely healed and had no physical restrictions. Once the close femur fracture is caused, do not try to walk or else it might lead to more problems. It can happen for lots of reasons and in many ways. The long, straight part of the femur thighbone is called the femoral shaft. A supracondylar femur fracture, also called a distal femur, is a break in the bone that occurs just above the knee joint. When cancer spreads into bones, it can make them weak and more likely to break fracture. A hip fracture can cause hip pain, swelling or bruising, and the hip may look deformed. Sometimes pain that is perceived as bone pain is something else. Press hard all over the place with one or two fingers. Your leg may look shorter or out of its normal position.
A femur fracture is when a portion of the femur breaks. A femur fracture is an injury to the thigh bone usually caused by trauma. Fortunately, not all falls are severe enough to break a hip bone. These areas of new bone are called osteosclerotic or osteoblastic lesions.
Whenever a bone breaks or cracks, the injury is called a fracture. Cancer in the bone may cause severe pain for a while before the bone actually breaks. Instability of the leg is one of the remarkably ordinary symptoms of close femur fracture. Pain is the most common symptom of bone metastasis. A fractured tibia occurs just underneath the knee and above the ankle. Apr 15, 2016 for a minor bone bruise, your doctor may recommend rest, ice, and pain relievers. The bone can break straight across transverse fracture or into many pieces comminuted fracture. But fractures of your shinbone tibia the major weightbearing bone in your lower leg and the bone that runs alongside your tibia below your knee fibula may be more subtle. Sometimes these fractures extend into the knee joint and separate the surface of the bone into a few or many parts. The femur is the longest and strongest bone in the body and requires a great deal of force to snap. Dec 28, 2018 conversely, femur fractures that occur after lowenergy trauma suggest the presence of some type of underlying bone condition.
Fractured leg symptoms may not be as obvious as you might think. However, others that completely break the bone, cause the bone to be crushed or displaced need immediate surgery. Soft tissue refer to the muscles, ligaments, nerves, tendons and blood vessels, joint cartilage, etc. A broken hip is usually a fracture in the upper portion of your femur, or thigh bone. I am 52 years old female and a bone scan shows i have no osteoporosis. Sometimes the pain from a bone fracture may be referred for example, hip fractures may cause knee pain. Minimally displaced, in which the bone has shifted slightly along or away from a break. It runs from the knee to the hip socket, ending at the top with the ball portion of your hip joint, and is sometimes called the thigh bone. Pain is the bodys instinctive response to a femur injury.
Youll probably have a lot of pain in your hip or groin. A femoral fracture is a fracture of the thigh bone femur. The surgeon may also put a plate next to your bone that is attached by screws. Im barely taking narcotics for the pain anymore, however the occasional time i do they are very much needed. Jun 19, 2014 i have had the tests and i have a fracture in my right femur bone caused by fosamax usage over a number of years. The term bone fracture andor broken bone means that a bone is damaged enough to consider it not to be intact. What is close femur fracture, know its causes, signs. A femur fracture is a crack, break or crush injury to the thigh bone. The tibia is one of the most common long bones that get fractured. Nov 22, 2017 a femur fracture is a crack, break or crush injury to the thigh bone. My femur cracked at its top during the surgery and a metal ring was put around it. Chronic pain is a serious problem following a femur fracture.
I was on fosamax for 8 years and quit last fall when i complained of thigh pain. A femur fracture is a break, crack, or crush injury of the thigh bone. A broken thighbone femur the strongest bone in your body usually is obvious because it takes so much force to break. Moreover, heat can reduce muscle stiffness, and encourage movement. Displaced, in which a part of the bone has become completely detached. From what my patients have said and from what ive experienced, orthopedic pain is some of the worst that a person can endure. Thr my femur cracked during surgery joint replacement. Better yet, have someone else do it since it might not work as well doing it to yourself. Distal femur thighbone fractures of the knee orthoinfo aaos. They may suggest that you take nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, such as aleve or ibuprofen if the bone. A severe pain hits the thigh and one will find it increasingly difficult to use the leg and this is the major symptom of close femur fracture.
Dont take these pain killers that slow down bone healing do this instead we all hope it will never happen. A broken femur can be very painful, and you may need pain medicine to decrease your pain. I have had the tests and i have a fracture in my right femur bone caused by fosamax usage over a number of years. A hip fracture is a break in the top quarter of the thighbone, which is also called the femur. Fractures of the distal femur occur most frequently either as highenergy injuries in young men or lowenergy. A hairline hip fracture, also commonly called a stress fracture, is a crack in the femur or femoral neck that, if not treated properly, can get larger over time, according to houston methodist orthopedics and.
Pain is the bodys natural response when a bone breaks. Motor vehicle collisions, for example, are the number one cause of femur fractures. Jan 12, 2009 i had total hip left replacement jan 1209. A broken femur is usually caused by a severe accident. I had put up with it for a year or so and thought it was due to my arthritic back. Both the fracture and injuries to the soft tissues near the fracture site can cause pain, bruising, swelling, and redness.
The following steps will help you during the recovery process. A femur fracture causes extreme pain in the upper leg area. The femur is the longest and strongest bone in the body, and it takes a great deal of force to break it. This lesson is about fracture of the femur and related symptoms, treatment. The leg bones near the hip often fracture because these bones support most of your weight, but other bones can fracture too. This is a serious injury that is usually diagnosed by a physician.
How to treat a femur fracture broken thigh bone verywell health. Proximal femur fractures, or hip fractures, involve the uppermost portion of the thigh bone just adjacent to the hip joint. A broken thighbone femur the strongest bone in your body usually is. Whether it was from a fall, a blow to your hip, or something else, youll do best if you have surgery right away. Although my hip pain is gone, i am have extreme pain in my aterior femur bone, along with pain still from t. Injuries from a fall can range from very mild to broken bones. Oct 20, 2018 the tibia which is also known as the shin bone belongs to the group of long bones of the body with the other long bones being the femur, fibula, and the humerus. But first, your doctor might want to do some tests. These fractures often involve the cartilage surface of the knee joint and are most commonly seen in people with severe osteoporosis or those who have previously undergone total knee replacement surgery. Nondisplaced, in which the bone has cracked but not separated. Because the femur bone is so crucial to walking and moving through your daily life, breaking it is often quite demoralizing. Find out who is at risk for a fractured bone and how to tell if you have one. They may suggest that you take nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, such as.
The femur being the thigh bone that runs from the hip to the knee, it is much more common to have a hip or knee problem than something specifically wrong with part of the femur that is not part of one of those joints. Hip stress fracture symptoms, causes, and treatment. Learn about lifestyle changes that can keep your bones strong and reduce your hip fracture risk. But if it does, you might be surprised to discover that when it comes to fracture healing, the donts may be just as important as the dos. The femur is the strongest and thickest bone in the body. Osteoporosis itself doesnt hurt and cant alert you to its presence, but the damage it causes can hurt. Severe injuries to the pelvis that involve several breaks can be lifethreatening. Jun 19, 2014 i am so sorry re your broken femur but you are not alone. The break may also injure the muscles, tendons, ligaments, and. Femur shaft fractures broken thighbone orthoinfo aaos. Distal femur fractures most often occur either in older people whose bones are weak, or in younger people who have high energy. A hairline hip fracture, also commonly called a stress fracture, is a crack in the femur or femoral neck that, if not treated properly, can get larger over time, according to houston methodist orthopedics and sports medicine. Pelvic fractures can also occur spontaneously or after minor falls in people with boneweakening diseases such as osteoporosis. A fractured femur in a child may be a sign of child abuse.
In the most common surgery to repair a femur fracture, the surgeon inserts a rod or large nail into the center of the bone. Both the fracture and any injuries to the body tissue near the fracture site can produce pain. Sport injuries, car accidents and falls are the most likely causes of a broken femur. Pain management options for bone fractures guardian liberty. Femur fractures can cause severe pain, swelling, and bruising. These falls may only cause bruising and swelling of the hip, along with some pain and stiffness. This type of broken leg almost always requires surgery to heal. But right now i need people who have been through this or something similar. A broken thighbone femur the strongest bone in your body usually. While it is commonplace to reference a broken bone or bone break regarding a fracture of a bone, a break is. Even worse, this pain could persist even after the bone has healed. Jonathan cluett, md, is a boardcertified orthopedic surgeon with subspecialty training in sports medicine and arthroscopic surgery. Symptoms include a dull ache deep in the general area of the thigh. A hip fracture resulting from a fall is a very serious medical emergency.
Because the femur is so strong, it usually takes a lot of force to break it. I went to a specialist because my back pain and groin pain was more then i could bear. The femur is a very large, strong bone that is difficult to break. The femur, or thigh bone, is the largest and strongest bone in the human body. May 06, 2009 from what my patients have said and from what ive experienced, orthopedic pain is some of the worst that a person can endure. Experiences with elderly parent that have broken femur. A broken bone in your leg may produce pain in your knee or ankle. Fractures of the thighbone that occur just above the knee joint are called distal femur fractures.
There are three stages of pain from a broken femur. Because of this, it is important for everyone to understand some of the components of chronic pain management. Osteoporosis is silent until it hurts osteoporosis health. Your skin around the injury may also swell, get red or bruise. Pain management options for bone fractures can be diverse and varied in nature. Generally the recovery time for a broken bone is 4 to 6 weeks, depending on the circumstances of the injury. How long does it take to recover from a broken femur. Smaller, simpler fractures of the femur do not typically require surgery. Jul 31, 2018 if the femur is not set properly, theres a chance the leg will become shorter than the other one and may cause hip or knee pain many years later. Signs and symptoms of a bone fracture are usually pain, swelling and inflammation especially at the site where the bone is broken.
For a minor bone bruise, your doctor may recommend rest, ice, and pain relievers. The femur is the second most commonly fractured long bone, with about 325 000 fractures per year in the united states. The long, straight part of the femur is called the femoral shaft. The pain level goes from zero to ten in 60 seconds. My biggest concerns are not managing pain, its when does healing conclude and blood flow bf, or draining, stop.
Conversely, femur fractures that occur after lowenergy trauma suggest the presence of some type of underlying bone condition. Femoral fractures orthopedics intermountain healthcare. A femur stress fracture is a hairline fracture of the femur thigh bone. Sometimes, fixation devices are attached to a frame outside your leg. Femur or thighbone is the longest and strongest bone in your body. Femur fracture broken thigh bone orthopedic medical. It didnt heal at all and 15 months later i had a bone graft to stimulate bone growth, which worked.
Managing symptoms of bone metastases american cancer society. When there is a break anywhere along this length of bone, it is called a femoral shaft fracture. Although quite rare it is caused by prolonged overuse. If the femur is not set properly, theres a chance the leg will become shorter than the other one and may cause hip or knee pain many years later. Pelvic fractures can also occur spontaneously or after minor falls in people with bone weakening diseases such as osteoporosis. Dont take these pain killers that slow down bone healing. Broken femur types, causes, treatment, recovery time. It takes an extremely strong force to break a femur. When possible, your doctor will try to prevent the fracture. Soft tissue refer to the muscles, ligaments, nerves, tendons and blood. The pain created by a femur fracture is often incredibly severe.