Hip Fractures And Senior Balance Exercises

Senior Balance Exercises To Avoid Fractures

By Suzanne Stoke, Physical Therapist @ Exercise For Balance via www.exerciseforbalance.com

    Unfortunately, falling and sustaining a hip fracture is a common problem in older adults and can be minimized by practicing senior balance exercises on a regular basis. Please see more at   http://www.exerciseforbalance.com/buy-now Hip fractures can be quite prevalent and also difficult to always see clearly on an x-ray. According to medical professionals, the occult, or ‘hidden’, hip fracture is one in which the clinical findings are suggestive of a fracture but this is not confirmed by radiographs. Most hip fractures can be readily diagnosed using radiographs, consisting of an anteroposterior (AP) and a lateral projection of the hip, whenever the clinical suspicion of a fracture first arises. Importantly, no clinical decision rule has yet become available that would allow clinicians to exclude a hip fracture without imaging. To avoid misdiagnosis with hip pain being attributed erroneously to soft tissue injury and the patient being discharged, a high index of clinical suspicion of hip fracture is required. This applies in all patients presenting with a typical history - usually hip pain following trauma, e.g. a fall – as certain typical features, such as the inability to bear weight or a shortened, abducted and externally rotated leg, may be absent. Achieving an accurate diagnosis as soon as possible is advantageous for a variety of reasons. The primary reason is that without an accurate diagnosis it is not possible to formulate a proper management plan. A fracture which is not obviously evident on radiographs is likely to be undisplaced. Once the hip fracture is demonstrated early diagnosis may allow for a simple procedure to fix the fracture in situ. Should it be confirmed that no hip fracture is present then other diagnoses may be sought, there is less chance of the patient being kept unnecessarily immobile and the patient may not need to stay in hospital. Hip radiographs have an estimated sensitivity of between 90% and 98%, and the initial films will therefore miss only a small proportion of hip fractures. It is, however, essential to ensure that the radiographs are of satisfactory quality. In particular, if the initial AP film of the entire pelvis together with the lateral hip projection (taken in the position of comfort) show no fracture, a third film should be taken centred on the hip with the hip in 10 degrees of internal rotation to position the femoral neck at 90 degrees to the x-ray beam and ensure an optimum view of this area. All subsequent discussion and recommendations assume radiographs of this standard to have been obtained before characterising a suspected but undetected fracture as occult. The prevalence of occult hip fractures is estimated to be around 3 – 4%; up to 9% in some series (though a proportion of this may reflect radiographs of inadequate standard as discussed above). Bone resorption around the fracture site, or cortical displacement, will render most occult hip fractures visible if radiographs are repeated after a few days. This is due to bone resorption occurring along the fracture line making it radiographically more obvious, but displacement or impaction may occur during this interval due to the patient having walked with the fracture. Delays in surgery due to late diagnosis are associated with prolonged suffering and poorer health outcomes for patients, and expose clinicians to the risk of litigation. In addition, decreasing the possibility of falling and experiencing a hip fracture can be reduced by practicing senior balance exercises to improve stability every day.

Senior Balance Exercises For Reduced Fractures

   Older individuals who rehearse senior balance exercises as part of a consistent fitness routine have less likelihood of falling and incurring a hip fracture. No it is easy to perform steadiness routines in the comfort of your own home by joining in with the instruction of a knowledgeable Physical Therapist in the Exercise for Balance DVD.

Senior Balance Exercises In The Exercise For Balance DVD

    To decrease the chance of falling,  get started on a course of the best balance exercises with the Exercise For Balance DVD. The healthcare provider recommended Exercise For Balance DVD is a high quality instructional DVD to use at home or in a group setting. The easy to understand and simple to follow Exercise For Balance DVD includes  a step by step series of the latest balance and strength exercises necessary to optimize senior fitness and to carry out basic daily activities like shopping, doing laundry,  walking, standing, cleaning house, stair climbing or to advance to more difficult pursuits like skiing, dancing, playing golf and hiking. In the  comprehensive Exercise For Balance DVD, you will learn how to improve stability, how to apply steadiness techniques and how to safely execute balance routines from a  qualified balance specialist --- licensed Physical Therapist---who has worked with balance and dizziness disorders for over 25 years. Get your copy of the Exercise For Balance DVD by clicking on the BUY NOW button

Don't fall! Start balance exercises today with the Exercise For Balance DVD to improve balance and prevent falls.
For more information see http://www.mayoclinic.com/health-information/