Houston Rehabilitation Hospital

Hip Fracture Rehabilitation

According to a functional recovery study by Munin, Seligman, et al., patients receiving post hip fracture in Inpatient Rehab Facilities (IRF) were more likely to attain 95% of their pre-fracture FIM motor ability at 12 weeks after hospital discharge than those similar patients admitted to Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF). Additionally, those same patients had an average length of stay at the Inpatient Rehab Facility of 12.8 days versus 36.2 days at the Skilled Nursing Facility and more than 81% of the patients treated at the IRF were discharged to home compared with only 45.5% of the patients admitted to the SNF. Munin, et al.; Effect of Rehabilitation Site on Functional Recovery After Hip Fracture; Arch. Phys Med Rehab Vol 86, March 2005.

What is the effect of hip fractures?

Of all fall-related fractures, hip fractures cause the greatest number of deaths and lead to the most severe health problems and reduced quality of life (Wolinsky 1997; Hall 2000).
In 1999 in the United States, hip fractures resulted in approximately 338,000 hospital admissions (Popovic 2001).
Most patients with hip fractures are hospitalized for about one week (Popovic 2001). Up to 25% of community-dwelling older adults who sustain hip fractures remain institutionalized for at least a year (Magaziner 2000).
In 2000, direct medical cost totaled $179 million dollars for fatal and $19 billion dollars for nonfatal fall injuries (Stevens 2005, in press).CDC 1996).
From 2000 to 2040, the number of people age 65 or older is projected to increase from 34.8 million to 77.2 million. For people over 85, the relative growth rate is even faster (U.S. Bureau of the Census 1998). Given our aging population, by the year 2040, the number of hip fractures is expected to exceed 500,000 (Cummings 1990).