Broken hip

Windfall

Registered User
Oct 18, 2005
12
0
Hampshire
Hi

I'm feeling a bit of a cheat because I hardly post on here...and I don't get time to visit much. But now I need some help and it seems that you're the place to start.

My 82 year old mother had a fall (or was pushed?) last night and I've just learned from the hospital that she has boken her hip. They will operate sometme today.

She is in probably late mid stage dementia. Still mobile, still continent, recognises people she sees every day (but not me, who she sees every month), doesn't really eat, is restless at night (hence the fall), can't watch tv, can't read or amuse herself in any way.

In a few hours I will rouse the family and we will be on our way to see her (they live a 2 hour drive away).

I'm wondering what effect this will have on her. How easy is it going to be for her to recover? Will this advance the alzheimers?

Anyone with similar experiences willing to share?



By the way if it was 'a push' there will be no blame attached to her 87 year old partner who does a heartbreakingly wonderful job of looking after her. I haven't spoken to him yet but I can imagine what he's going through right now and I really need to speak to him to reassure him.
 

Grannie G

Volunteer Moderator
Apr 3, 2006
81,445
0
Kent
Hello Sharon.

Don`t feel a cheat..............this is the place to start.

No-one can say whether or not this accident will affect your mother`s Alzheimers, but it`s possible she will be very confused, in hospital and after the surgery.

Whether she recovers from the confusion remains to be seen.

I wish her well.

Love xx
 

Cate

Registered User
Jul 2, 2006
1,370
0
Newport, Gwent
Hi Sharon

The frequency of your visits really doesnt matter, TP is here for when you need it, I think its just great when people go through periods when they dont need it, it usually means things are going fine.

There is no know way of knowing if this will have a lasting effect, fingers crossed your mum is OK after the surgery.

Drive carefully.

Love
Cate
 

noelphobic

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
3,452
0
Liverpool
My mum broke her hip in January last year and unfortunately it did seem to result in a marked deterioration in her, both mentally and physically.

She is now wheelchair bound and her dementia is much further advanced. Although she was capable of walking soon after the surgery she had very little physio. I think this may partly have been because she found it hard to follow instructions and could not get used to using the zimmer frame. However, she did get up from her bed unaided once or twice and walk around the ward, to the consternation of the other patients!

Because she did not regain mobility she was unable to return to her EMI home and moved into a nursing home after 4 or 5 weeks in hospital - she would have been discharged much sooner but it took us that long to find a home we were happy with.

Obviously things may be very different for your mother and she may well regain her mobility. I would say that the best thing you can do is to push for as much physio as possible both during her hospital stay and after discharge. This will give her the best possible chance of walking again. Make sure it is agreed BEFORE she is discharged as it will be much more difficult to arrange anything once she is off their hands.

I do think my mother's mental deterioration may be partly due to her immobility. While she was able to walk around she did get much more contact with others and possibly felt more in control.

I hope your mother fares much better as I am sure not everyone is as unfortunate.
 

suptowngirl

Registered User
Sep 19, 2005
39
0
Staffordshire
Hi Sharon

I am sorry to hear about your moms fall and her broken hip. The same happened to my mom.

Read the post " coming to an end " it says how my mom has gone down quickly after her surgery.

The annesthetic does something to AD sufferers and they do not recover as well as others who haven't got it.

Try to make sure she starts walking after her op. They gave up on my mom because she was frightened and didn't understand what was happening to her. the nursing staff in the hospital are rushed off their feet and don't have time to feed or care for AD patients. Mom was left for hours lying in a soiled bed.
Other patients in the ward who had dementia or AD were left like that too, when we were there we had to fetch the staff to clean patients up after hours of sitting in their excrement.

I really hope she gets through ok
Take Care
Suptowngirl
 

mojofilter

Registered User
May 10, 2006
130
0
St.Helens
My mother broke her hip on the 20th of June and she never really recovered from the operation.

Before being pushed over she was the life and soul of the nursing home, always singing and dancing.... The hospital stay had a terrible effect on her, she totally went into herself and never really returned to her old self before passing away last Monday.

I hope and pray that your mum recovers from her operation better than mine did..

Paul
 

SHANDY

Registered User
Jan 24, 2007
26
0
my mum is 79 and is in a nursing home with vascular dementia, she fell at the home in june this year, now she seems to be getting around , either with a zimmer frame or holding the rails around the home.
when it happened, she lost all her confidence, she loved to sing and dance with the carers when the entertainment was on at the home, however, her dementia has deteriated since the accident and she is more confused than ever, just try to make sure she starts to get around as soon as possible.


good luck


shandy
 

gill@anchorage5

Registered User
Apr 29, 2007
211
0
Southampton
Don't give up

Hi Sharon

My Dad has had AZ for 14 years and deterioration was fortunately very gradual until about 6 months ago when he had 2 major medical traumas within a week, the 2nd of which was a fractured knee and plaster cast from ankle to thigh.

Yes it knocked him for six and he was very confused - expecially during his stay in the General Hospital - the ward was not geared up to cater for his mental health, only the physical mending of the broken bone.

6 months on - he is still very up & down - and I have no doubt that the physical trauma set him back. But he still has good & lucid times for which we are all grateful. Don't give up & I agree with the previous post - get the physio into place as soon as you can & make arrangements for this to continue for as long as needed after she is discharged.

Wishing you all well

Love

Gill x
 

nemesisis

Registered User
May 25, 2006
100
0
windfall

sadly my mum fell and broke her hip in august she had a hip replacement which has gone very well but sadly because she was in so much pain before they did the op (6 days) and the period after she has become incontinent because as you are probably aware once a skill has gone it does not return she had three more falls in hospital because once she had had the operation and the pain was gone she forgot and tried to walk so unfortunatly due to her risk of further falls she has now be assessed as not safe to go home so we are currently looked for a care home for her. this is only my experiance and I hope your mum makes a full recovery. good luck x
 

Margaret W

Registered User
Apr 28, 2007
3,720
0
North Derbyshire
Hi Sharon,

I've no personal experience of this apart from my own experience of a bad back, and the advice is to be as mobile as possible. Mobility is vital for all sorts of reasons. If you are not mobile all bits of the body are affected, not least the bowels, I recall screaming with pain on emptying my bowels after 3 weeks in bed. I got up, and the problem resolved. Also breathing is easier if you are upright and mobile, and of course you are less bored.

The hospital my mum was in for 6 weeks would have had your mum up as soon as possible, so that is what you want to aim for. Even just a potter round the room with a frame on wheels will help, and of course if she can go to the toilet (with assistance perhaps) it is so much better than being hoisted onto a bedpan.

Hope she does okay. Let us know.

Margaret
 

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