What is A Femoral Fracture?

"Femoral" refers to the femur, or the thigh bone.  One of the strongest bones in the body, it usually requires a great deal of force in order to cause a femur fracture.  As the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons explain on their website:

To break the thighbone across its length (shaft) takes a great deal of force, as might occur in a motor vehicle accident or a fall from a high place. Because of this, a broken thighbone is often associated with potentially life-threatening injuries to other body systems.

Symptoms of a femoral fracture include severe pain,inability to move the leg, deformity, and swelling.  A broken femur can be life threatening.

As eMedicine explains:

The femur is the largest and strongest bone and has a good blood supply. Because of this and its protective surrounding muscle, the shaft requires a large amount of force to fracture. Once a fracture does occur, this same protective musculature usually is the cause of displacement, which commonly occurs with femoral shaft fractures.


As with many orthopedic injuries, neurovascular complications and pain management are the most significant issues in patients who come to the ED. The rich blood supply, when disrupted, can result in significant bleeding. Open fractures have added potential for infection.

While normally a large amount of force is required to break the bone, evidence suggests that patients taking the bisphosphonate Fosamax (R) can suffer abnormal, or "atypical" femur fractures.  These atypical femur fractures do not require much force, and otherwise healthy-seeming femurs break all too easily.

Learn more about Fosamax(R) and Fosamax Femur Fracture Lawsuits at our Fosamax Fracture Lawsuit website.

Have you or a loved one suffered from a femur fracture?  Please leave a comment and share your story below!