Hip fracture fixation surgery is a surgical procedure performed to repair a broken hip bone, typically caused by a traumatic injury such as a fall or an accident. The surgery involves the use of metal screws, plates, or nails to hold the fractured bone in place until it heals.
The procedure is typically performed under general anaesthesia, which means that the you are asleep during the surgery. Dr Singh will make an incision over the hip and then use special tools to carefully realign the fractured bone fragments. Once the bone is in the correct position, he will use metal screws, plates, or nails to hold the bone in place.
In some cases, Dr Singh may use a procedure called a hip replacement instead of fixation surgery. This involves replacing the damaged hip joint with an artificial one.
After surgery, you will typically stay in the hospital for a few days to recover. You will receive pain medication to manage any discomfort and will be encouraged to begin physiotherapy to help regain strength and mobility in the affected hip. In general, recovery from hip fracture fixation surgery can take several weeks to several months, depending on the extent of the injury and the individual patient’s health and healing ability.
The surgical procedure
Your hip fracture fixation surgical procedure starts off with you being wheeled into the operating bay and meeting with a member of the anaesthesia team who will administer your anaesthetic.
Once you are anaesthetised, Dr Singh will make a cut (incision) in your skin to reach the broken bone and put the pieces back in place. Once he has put the pieces back in the right place, he will use pins or screws to hold them together. Dr Singh might also use a metal plate to help reinforce the broken area.
The incision is then closed with sutures or surgical staples and a bandage is applied.
The surgical procedure usually takes between 1 to 2 hours in total.
Immediately after a hip fracture fixation procedure
Immediately after surgery, you will be wheeled into a recovery room on your ward bed and given oxygen to help you breath. Leads will be on your chest to monitor your heart rate, and an intravenous line (drip) will be in your arm which dispenses fluid and paracetamol for the first 24-36 hours following your procedure.
When you wake up in the recovery ward, you may feel a bit groggy. Dr Singh and the hospital team will monitor you, checking your blood pressure, temperature, and pulse.
The nursing team at the hospital will help you perform your normal day to day activities as required. The hospital physiotherapists will also help you to achieve independence with the following post-surgery goals:
- Lifting your leg in and out of bed (using a small device)
- Walking with a frame
- Walking with crutches or a walking stick on a level surface
- Walking up and down stairs
- Getting in and out of a chair
- Going to the bathroom
Recovery timelines following hip fracture fixation surgery
Your hospital stay following a hip fracture fixation procedure is usually 3 -5 nights, however, may be longer based on your individual situation. Dr Singh takes into consideration your age, general health, whether you have help at home, if your home has a lot of steps among other factors when determining your required stay in the hospital.
In hospital, the day after your procedure, you will begin Physiotherapy twice a day that includes gentle exercises, learning to sit, stand, and walk with partial weight-bearing and crutches.
In the first week following surgery, you may experience:
SWELLING– From your thigh down into your foot is common. Swelling may increase for the first few days after surgery and will gradually lessen although some swelling can still be present for 12 months or so after surgery.
BRUISING – Bruising is common and can usually be found anywhere on your thigh and down into your foot. At times the bruising can be quite dramatic, but it will resolve. Bruising is the result of some residual bleeding making its way to the surface or, it can also come about from the blood thinning tablets you will be taking.
BLISTERING – In some patients, blisters will develop near your incision. The blistering is usually due to surface fluid, and although they may look alarming, they are usually of no consequence. Blisters can be caused by the bandages rubbing on your skin or from tissue swelling. They may burst and leak fluid and can sometimes be large and alarming, but they are harmless, and will always resolve.
MUSCLE SORNESS – During surgery, some stretching and pulling on your muscles occurs. Your muscles can feel stiff and sore to touch with pain like a corked thigh. Walking and stretching can usually help alleviate this.
INCISION WARMTH – For some patients, the operated hip may radiate heat and feel very warm. This is because, part of the body’s natural healing process is to supply more blood to areas in the body that have been wounded, and it is the extra blood around the incision which creates the warm feeling.
Many patients may be able to put full weight on the leg within 30 to 45 days after the procedure.
Post-surgical physiotherapy & rehabilitation
Physiotherapy is required following hip fracture fixation surgery to ensure that you get the best possible outcome. With the guidance of your physio, you will progressively advance through various stages of your rehabilitation, as outlined in our post-operative protocol and your physiotherapist will have some flexibility to safely modify your progression to meet your specific goals and expectations.
Potential surgical risks
As with all surgeries there are certain risks and potential complications. The following is a list of possible complications, and the measures Midwest Orthopaedics uses to mitigate them from occurring:
Blood clots: Clots (deep venous thrombosis or DVT) can occur in the veins of the legs after any surgery.
To reduce the risks of clots forming, Dr Singh will prescribe aspirin to thin your blood and he uses special compression sleeves during and after your operation. The Midwest Orthopaedics team will also spend time educating you on calf muscle exercises to be performed after surgery and ensure the hospital team get you up and mobile as quickly as possible after surgery.
Infection: This is a very serious complication which occurs in approximately 1% of cases.
Although uncommon, the Midwest Orthopaedics team take the following precautions to further minimise this risk:
- prior to surgery, your skin is tested to ensure resistant organisms are not present
- your limb is prepared with antiseptic on the ward prior to surgery
- intravenous antibiotics are used at the time of surgery
- the surgical team are required to wear special, self-enclosed theatre gowns
- any infection that develops after surgery is treated immediately
Damage to nerves and arteries: Important nerves and arteries lie close to the hip joint, and it is possible, although very rare, for these to be injured during total hip replacement surgery. Should this occur, further surgery may be necessary to repair the nerve or artery and reduce the chance of permanent damage occurring.
The patients general and mental health: As with all surgeries, patients can develop problems such as a heart attack or stroke during or after an anaesthetic. This is often related to health problems present before the surgery though and is why Dr Singh arranges a specialist physician review prior to your procedure.
Discovering any potential problems before surgery drastically reduces the risk of any of these complications from occurring.
Estimate of fee | hip fracture fixation surgery
As a privately insured patient at Midwest Orthopaedics, typically, costs associated with surgery are as follows:
Your initial consultation fee, review consultation fee & Dr Singh’s surgical fees.
Your level of healthcare and your provider greatly influence your out-of-pocket expenses, so we recommend that you check with your health fund prior to booking in for surgery.
Other related charges include the Anaesthetist, the surgical assistant, the hospital fees and any in-patient pathology and radiology charges if x-rays or scans were required.
In the Australian public health care system, there is universal cover provided through Medicare. This means that all Australian residents can be treated with no out of -pocket costs incurred. Dr Singh does operate in the public sector at Geraldton Regional Hospital however, the waiting list to even meet with him can be long (too long), followed by even longer waiting lists for your operation.
Because of this, an increasing number of people are choosing to “Self-Insure” or pay for their own surgery even without private health insurance. This is often a worthwhile investment as it means you can have your operation done straight away or whenever it suits you. All the private hospital fees associated with your surgery are an out-of-pocket expense for self-pay surgeries and we will assist you in obtaining an estimate of costs from the private hospital before you go ahead with your procedure.
