Hip Fractures
This is possibly one of the most worrying causes of hip pain, especially in older adults who suffer elderly falls. It can also be a sports injury in younger patients, but the prevalence is low. These injuries can have a bad outcome sometimes, and emergency management is required to reduce the long-term risks.
It is essential to highlight that hip fractures are not limited to the senior population. For many years, military recruits were recognized to experience femoral neck stress fractures due to a combination of strenuous exercise regimes, highly repetitive movements, and bad technique. More recently, young people repeatedly engage in self-imposed fitness regimes and can also have the same risk factors as those military recruits.
Another cause of hip fractures in young people is high-energy trauma, especially in car accidents or dangerous sporting-related accidents.
Hip fractures usually happen in the femoral neck, which is located in the upper end of the femur bone. They can be found inside the joint capsule or outside. When these fractures are not properly managed, the complication is avascular necrosis, which is particularly common in adolescents and children with hip fractures. This is because younger patients do not have an abundant blood supply to the femoral head region. Thus, when something compresses the blood vessels, there is no collateral flow that compensates.