Hip arthritis and fractures are leading causes of disability among aging Americans. Here’s what you need to know.
- Your hip is the second largest weight-bearing joint in your body, second only to your knee.
- About one in four people develop painful hip arthritis by age 85. Without treatment, one in six people with arthritis find it difficult to walk a quarter mile and about one in nine have trouble climbing stairs.
- More than 330,000 people receive hip replacements each year. The rate has doubled since 1992 as surgical advances lead to faster and fuller recovery.
- Hospitals admit about 250,000 people each year over age 65 for hip fractures. Falls, usually sideways, cause more than 95 percent of these fractures.
- Women are far more likely to fracture their hips than men, partly because women show higher risk for osteoporosis, which weakens bones. Women account for three-fourths of all hip fractures.
