1. An elderly women slips on the polished floor of a supermarket. She is lying o
ID: 3506678 • Letter: 1
Question
1. An elderly women slips on the polished floor of a supermarket. She is lying on her back in severe pain. She tells you she heard a loud snap as she fell. Her right leg is laterally rotated and shorter than the other. She is unable to get up or lift leg, and experiences extreme pain if she tries. At the hospital, an x-ray is taken and she is diagnosed with an intracapsular fracture of the femoral neck. her a. What is the most common fracture site of the femur in elderly people? What is it often wrongly referred to as? (2) b. Why is this bone so fragile in the elderly? Describe why this reason leads to bone fragility. (2) c. Is the fall the likely cause of the break? Why or why not? Explain. (2) d. Explain why her injured limb was shorter than the other. (1) Femur neck fractures often result in problems with healing. What is the primary reason for this? (1) e.Explanation / Answer
a) Most common fracture site of femur in elderly people is at the neck of the femur that is called as femoral neck fracture.
b) This bone becomes fragile because femoral neck progressively loses bone tissue and bone density. Menopause and diseases like osteoporosis,taking medications for a long time,chronic alcohol use are associated with low density of bone making the bones fragile,weak and thinner.
c) Yes,the fall is the cause of the break. Most bone fractures are caused by fall and accidents. Due to hormonal imbalance ( testosterone in males and oestrogen in females) these hormones get declined which leads to weaker thinner bones which eventually leads to break due to fall.
d) Femoral fractures lead to leg length discrepancy (LLD) if the fracture goes through a growth plate,that limb eventually become shorter or longer than the opposite limb.
e)Femoral neck fractures can disrupt the blood supply to the head of the femur which cause bone death or necrosis. Due to disparity in size between bone fragments,the fracture can be very difficult to align and heal
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