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Complications
By Mayo Clinic staffA hip fracture is a serious injury. Although the fracture itself is treatable, complications can be life-threatening. If you also have an illness that makes it unsafe to undergo surgery to repair your broken hip, your doctor may use a tension system (traction) to allow your hip to heal.
The risk of traction is that it keeps you immobile for a long period, during which time you can develop blood clots in the veins of your legs. You can also develop a blood clot after hip surgery if you don't get up and move around very much. It's possible for a blood clot to become lodged in a pulmonary artery, blocking blood flow to lung tissue. This condition, called pulmonary embolism, can be fatal.
Other risks of traction and being immobile include:
- Bedsores
- Urinary tract infection
- Pneumonia
- Muscle wasting
Additionally, people who've had one hip fracture have a significantly increased risk of having another one.
