Broken or fractured,what's the difference ?

Question

My mother is 77 years old .She fell and fractured her hip.They put some screws in it.What's the difference between a fracture and a break.How long does a fractured hip take to heal ?

Answer 1

fracture and break are the same thing. I used to work as an Ortho tech .. (putting on casts) fracture is just the medical term. Any break in the bone small or large is a fracture.. a small fracture is usually refered to as a hairline fracture.

Usually fractured bones take 6-8 weeks to heal with healthy people depending on the break.. with elderly this could take longer.

Answer 2

There are 6 different types of fractures:

1) Greenstick - This is a fracture where one side of the bone is broken and the other side is only bent (sort of like a green twig from a tree).

2) Spiral - A fracture, sometimes called a torsion fracture, in which a bone has been twisted apart.

3) Comminuted - Bone is broken, splintered or crushed into a number of pieces.

4) Transverse - A fracture in which the break is across the bone, at a right angle to the long axis of the bone.

5) Compound - A fracture in which the bone is sticking through the skin. Also called an open fracture.

6) Compression - A fracture caused by compression, the act of pressing together. Compression fractures of the vertebrae are especially common with osteoporosis.


If more pressure is put on a bone than it can stand, it will split or break. A break of any size is called a fracture. If the broken bone punctures the skin, it is called an open fracture (compound fracture).

This is what broken bones are referred to. They are both the same.

Fracture = Brake

A stress fracture is a hairline crack in the bone that develops because of repeated or prolonged forces against the bone.

The healing time for everyone is different. My youngest son broke the distal part of his left femur (spiral fracture) and it took only 4 weeks to heal. But in others it doesn't take more than 6 weeks. I don't know where people get 6 months. If it takes that long somethings wrong with your bones.

Healing Process!!!!!

When a person breaks or factures their bone a hematoma is formed, which is a clot and it helps to stop the bleeding. Osteoblast form spongy bone around the fracture breaking down the blood clot forming new bone. Fibroblast form in the distant regions around the fractured bone and help to close the gap between the ends of broken bones. Phagocytic cells begin to remove the damaged area allowing space for the new bone to be formed. The fibro cartilage is replaced by a bony callus. Most of the time too much bone is formed around the broken area, so osteoclast remove the excess bone

Does that help?

And to the one below. Yes Web MD does have alot of the same thing, if you took an anatomy class you would know this. Got all of it out of my text book. He is a paramedic and a physician. That must be a pretty busy life.

Answer 3

Wow, it seems like we have a bunch of webMD.com physicians on this site. There should be some sort of stipulation that you prove your credentials before posting some kind of horse crap answers. But I digress. A Fracture is the same thing as a break. The terms can be used interchangably. There are various types of Fractures or Breaks however. So no, one is not as serious as the other. ATTN Morons: If you don't have medical training, don't answer please. You're going to kill someone. Also, a fractured hip usually is not a fracture in the pelvis itself. 90% of the fractures/breaks that are labeled "hip fractures" technically are fractures in the Femur (the long bone of the leg.) Many times the ball of the femur is broken. In most cases, a hip/femur fracture can easily be seen, and very easily palpated (felt by touch) since the ball of the femur has been removed from the acetabulum (socket) of the pelvis.

Answer 4

A fracture,and a break are quite similar.They are both breaks,but a fracture is more of a crack in the bone as opposed to a break,which means the bone is completely broken.Both are quite painful tho,a fracture hurts alot just the same as a break because it is a break,only a less serious one(depending where its at and the age of the patient).It will take her a while to get completely back to her own regular routine.She will need help doing things for quite a while.

Answer 5

Very serious problem. Not just the fracture, but her risk of contracting pneumonia is dangerous and could be life threatening. Fracture/break may be used synonymously by some, just depends on the actual injury itself. It could mean like a crack in the bone (fracture) instead of a clean break through and through. Healing time is never the same from case to case, may depend on her overall health status. If she has osteoporosis her healing may take longer than normal. Regardless, she will need a lot of close supervision in the days ahead and I hope those caring for her are diligent with their observations...Good Luck

Answer 6

Fractured hip means her bone is cracked as opposed to a break where the bones have been dislocated from each other. A fractured hip is painful in itself. For an elderly person, she will need a couple of months to heal up and alot of physical therapy. Encourage her and make sure she is protected from future falls.

Answer 7

fratcture is when the bone is cracked.....there are many diff levels of fractures. whereas a break is when the bone is cracked all the way through. but the biggest diff. is for insurance...if it is classified as a break then she could have a hospital stay but a fracture just gets seen by the dr and sent home. Healing time depends on the person. hips take a long time tho.

Answer 8

A fractured hip is sometimes referred to as broken. The fracture usually does not completely seperate the bone but is more like a crack. It will be a long hard recovery for her and it might be really difficult for you as well.
Good luck with everything and I hope it goes well.

PS- 77 is actually quite young. If she is in relatively good health, I'm sure you can both pull through this.

Answer 9

As an OR nurse, I can tell you...it's the same thing. Fracture is just a technical term for a break.
It will take several weeks/months to heal, depends on the person, their health (bone density), & activity level. Also, depends on each person's pain tolerance level.
Sorry it's not as specific as you'd like. Your mother's physician can probably answer the question better based on what he/she knows of your mother's health status.
All the best!

Answer 10

The term is the same break or fracture..hips can heal quickly or slowly..in your mothers case since she has screws in it much of her recovery depends on the type of fracture, her health, physical therapy, other medical conditions she has..or desire to get better..I wish her well...she will need family support.