NEW DELHI: Doctors warned that delaying medical treatment to a fractured hip by 24 hours can turn dangerous for the patient. Citing researches, experts claimed that the increased wait time was associated with a greater risk of 30-day mortality and other complications, including myocardial infarction, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and pneumonia in adults undergoing hip fracture surgery.
Sharing details of a recent case, doctors said a 45-year-old patient slipped and fell from stairs at his house in Bahadurgarh. Although he had suffered minor injuries, he experienced severe pain on his right hip. Ranjan and his family decided to remain at home and apply ice packs. It was only on the third day after the accident that he could not bear the pain any further and was taken to a hospital. “Upon investigation, we found that the patient fractured his hip due to the fall. He was hypertensive and we could operate on him only after controlling the high blood pressure, causing a gap of more than 60 hours between the time of fall and the operation,” said senior consultant Dr Deepak Raina.
