New York Hip Fracture Attorney

Slip and Fall Broken Hip Lawyers Serving Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island and the Bronx

Many dangerous conditions can cause someone to have a trip and fall or slip and fall accident in New York City. When a negligently maintained surface causes someone to hit the ground, a common injury is a hip fracture or broken hip, especially when the victim is an older female.

The Centers for Disease Control report that falls are to blame for 90 percent of the 352,000 hip fractures that occur in the country each year. About 80 percent of hip fracture victims are women, and 90 percent occur in victims aged 65 or older. One-in-seven post-menopausal women will suffer a hip fracture, as will nearly half the women who live to the age of 90.

A hip fracture is a serious injury, and its complications can be a life-changing or even life-ending event. In fact, the CDC says that one in four people who suffer a hip fracture will die within one year of their injury. Those who survive face an increased risk of suffering another hip fracture, and many will require assistance in their daily activities.

If you or a loved one has suffered a hip fracture in a New York slip and fall or trip and fall accident, protect your rights by calling the New York City trip & fall attorneys at David Resnick & Associates, PC, for a consultation. There is no obligation, so call today at (212) 279-2000 or contact the firm through our online form.

We serve slip and fall accident victims in New York City, including the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn and Long Island.

Symptoms and Treatments for New York Hip Fractures

Hip fractures often result from relatively minor falls — the type that could happen in any place of business, on any New York City street, in a New York nursing home or anywhere else in the city where the responsible parties fail to keep walking surfaces free of hazards.

Signs that someone has suffered a hip fracture include:

• Immobility after a fall.
• Inability to put weight on a leg.
• Severe pain in the hip and groin.
• One leg appearing shorter than the other.
• A leg that is turned outward.
• Bruising, soreness and stiffness in the hip.

An X-ray and, in some cases, an MRI, can verify that a bone has been broken and determine the exact nature of the hip fracture. The two main types of hip fractures are femoral neck fractures (where the ball of the hip is fractured from the femur, or thigh bone) and intertrochanteric hip fractures (a break on the thigh bone just below the femoral neck).

Hip fractures almost always require surgery, unless the injured person is too ill to undergo an operation. Most operations involve, at the minimum, the insertion of screws, plates and nails into the bones to hold the fracture together while it mends. Some cases require a partial hip replacement (where the ball part of the hip is replaced with a prosthesis) or a total hip replacement (where both the ball and socket parts of the joint are replaced).

Hip replacements usually work well for older, less active patients. However, they can be problematic for younger or more mobile recipients, and there have been several recalls and lawsuits regarding defective hip replacement systems in recent years.

Patients are typically urged to begin walking soon after the operation, usually as early as the following day. If there are no complications, hospital stays average about one week. Most patients will then begin a rehabilitation process that includes occupational therapy and physical therapy.

Fractured hipbones typically mend within 3-6 months. Screws, plates and other hardware usually are not removed.

Hip Fractures Lead to Frequent and Deadly Complications

While the fracture itself is treatable, complications from either the injury or the corrective surgery make broken hips very serious — and often fatal. In fact, CDC statistics show that only 25 percent of hip fracture victims will make a full recovery, while 40 percent will end up in a nursing home. More than half of everyone who suffers a hip fracture will need a cane or a walker. Few will return to their pre-injury level of mobility and independence.

Most tragically, nearly one-quarter of hip fracture patients will die of complications within 12 months of their injury. Frequent complications include:

• Blood clots, including ones that cause deadly pulmonary embolisms or deep-vein thrombosis.
• Avascular necrosis, or tissue death around the injured hip due to lack of blood circulation.
• Infection.
• Pneumonia.
• Heart attack
• Stroke.
• Improper joining of the bone.
• Urinary tract infections.
• Mental confusion.

Even if these complications are avoided or overcome, many patients still face years of expensive treatments, coupled with lost earnings and a diminished quality of life.

Were You Hurt in A Slip and Fall Accident in the Bronx? Call Our NYC Slip and Fall Lawyers Today

If you or someone you love suffered a hip fracture in a New York slip and fall accident and someone else was at fault, you could be entitled to compensation. The personal injury attorneys at David Resnick & Associates, PC, are skilled at evaluating slip and fall accident claims and have a record of accomplishment of getting results for their clients.

Call our firm today at (212) 279-2000 or use our online contact form for a free evaluation of your case.  We serve slip and fall accident victims in New York City, including the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn, NY and Long Island.