Abstract
Femoral shaft fractures occur in a bimodal distribution, resulting from high energy trauma in young patients and lower energy mechanisms in older patients. In cases of high energy trauma, the orthopedic surgeon must have a high suspicion for associated injuries, some of which may be subtle due to the distracting nature of the femur fracture. Femoral shaft fractures can be temporized in the preoperative period with the use of skeletal traction, which fatigues the thigh musculature and relieves muscle spasm. Typically, intramedullary nailing is used as definitive treatment, while open reduction and internal fixation or external fixation may be used in select cases.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Reference
Tornetta P, Kin MSH, Creevy WR. Diagnosis of femoral neck fractures in patients with a femoral shaft fracture. J Bone Joint Surg. 2007;89A:39–43.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Levins, J. (2018). Femoral Shaft Fractures. In: Eltorai, A., Eberson, C., Daniels, A. (eds) Essential Orthopedic Review. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78387-1_65
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78387-1_65
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-78386-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-78387-1
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)