The femur is the thigh bone whose upper end forms the hip joint and the lower end forms the knee joint. It is the largest bone in the human body and extends from the hip to the knee – this longer part of the bone is called a femoral shaft. This femoral shaft extends has a ball-like head which is extended by a narrow bone called the neck – the femoral neck.
The head of the femur fits into the hip socket to form a hip joint. As you might have already guessed, the narrower neck is often the vulnerable part of the entire system and tends to be at the receiving end of injuries and fractures.
“Femoral neck fractures are the most common forms of major hip injuries treated at our clinic in Mumbai. Around 90% of the cases happen in elder adults where bone density drastically diminishes with age”, says the best hip replacement surgeon in Mumbai Dr Niraj Vora.
How dangerous is femoral neck fracture?
The hip is the centre of every human movement. So saying fracture to the femoral neck brings down the quality of life is quite an understatement. The fracture can cut off the blood supply to the femoral head and like all other body parts that are deprived of blood supply – the bone tissue begins to die leading to eventual collapse.
So any type of femoral neck fracture needs immediate assistance from a hip specialist. Yes, there are a variety of femoral neck fractures and the treatments depend on pong the cause and severity of the fractures.
Femoral Neck Fracture – Types:
Femoral neck fractures are categorized based on the location of the fracture: the base, the middle and the upper portion of the femoral neck. On top of this each type of fracture is again classified into four grades based on the severity of eh fracture (Gardener System):
- Grade I: Partial fracture without a complete break of the neck.
- Grade II: Non-displaced fracture where the break happened but the bone hasn’t been displaced.
- Grade III: Complete fracture of the bone along with displacement from its location.
- Grade 4: Severely displaced bone fragments after suffering a complete fracture.
Femoral Neck Fracture – Causes:
Femoral neck fractures can also occur in the younger folk active in sports, especially hockey, soccer, rugby and even long-distance running. Both younger and adults can suffer from the femoral neck fracture due to collision injuries but elder adults due to their decreased bone density tend to suffer more severe fractures.
Femoral Fracture – Treatment:
The treatment for the femoral neck fracture depends on the severity of the injury. In non-displacement fractures medications, physical therapy, weight and stress management, and stabilization of hip joint with hardware are recommended by hip specialists in Mumbai. In severe cases of femoral neck fractures, hip arthroplasty, partial hip replacement and even total hip replacement may be considered by hip surgeons. If you are in Mumbai and are looking for more information on the treatment options, Dr Niraj Vora is the best hip replacement surgeon in Mumbai He holds an excellent track record in both non-surgical hip joint treatment and hip replacement surgeries in Mumbai. You can contact him here: @Call: +91-22-6686 8600