How to Recover From Hip Fracture & Surgery

When your fracture your hip, the bones of the upper quarter of your thigh or near the top of your leg have been broken. Signs of a hip fracture are the inability to bear weight on one side and severe pain in your pelvic or hip areas. You may also notice the affected leg can look shorter than the other or is turned outward. In addition, you can see bruising or feel swelling in your hip area. If you are healthy, you will need to undergo surgery to ensure proper healing. Recovery from your hip fracture will also include rehabilitation, perhaps with a stay in a rehabilitation facility if you do not have a family member or home nurse to help you with daily tasks like cooking or bathing until you completely recover.

Instructions

Recovery from Hip Fracture and Surgery

• 1

  Undergo surgery. Your surgeon will decide the best way to fix your fracture based on the area of your hip which is broken. Also, your surgeon can use devices like nails or screws to help mend the fracture. She may decide to use a plate with screws that are inserted in your femur rather than nails for a complicated fracture. If your femur is broken, your surgeon will use a single compression hip screw or individual screws to fix the fracture.

• 2

  Rehabilitate your hip. After surgery, undergo physical therapy. For instance, the day after surgery you could be encouraged--with assistance of a physical therapist---to try to bear weight on the repaired hip. Rehabilitation can take approximately three months or longer. You may have to use a cane or walker for several months after your surgery, according to Family Doctor. During physical therapy, you will learn how to stand, sit or walk without reinjuring your hip. In addition, your physical therapist will show you exercises to improve your hip's strength.

• 3

  Take medication. Your doctor may prescribe medication, either pills or injections, for six weeks to thin your blood and reduce your chance of blood clots. He may recommend that you wear elastic compression stockings or inflatable compression boots to reduce the chance of blood clots, according to American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

• 4

  Follow up with your surgeon. After your hip surgery, you will need to keep all appointments. Your surgeon will need to remove sutures, check your wound and ensure that your hip is healing properly. Also, your surgeon may recommend additional physical therapy, if needed.

• 5

  Manage the fracture. Non-surgical treatment will be required if you are confined to wheelchair or bed, too ill to undergo surgery or have any anesthesia and suffer from a stable fracture, according to the AAOS. Instead of surgery, your doctor may place you in traction to help your hip properly heal. Since traction will make you immobile, your doctor will monitor for any complications, like bed sores, infections or nutritional wasting. Also, your doctor will manage the fracture with periodic X-rays of the hip area to make sure that the bones have not become unstable or changed positions.