Femur

femur

The thigh bone, extending from the hip to the knee of four- and two-legged vertebrates, including humans. The femur is the largest, longest, and strongest bone of the human skeleton. Its rounded, smooth head fits into a socket in the pelvis called the acetabulum to form the hip joint (an example of a ball-and-socket joint). The head of the femur is joined to the bone shaft by a narrow piece of bone known as the neck of the femur. The neck of the femur is a point of structural weakness and a common fracture site. The lower end of the femur hinges with the tibia (shinbone) to form the knee joint.

The femur can be felt through the skin at two sites. At the lower end, the bone is enlarged to form two lumps called the condyles that distribute the weight-bearing load on the knee joint. On the outer side of the upper end of the femur is a protuberance called the greater trochanter. The gluteus and psoas muscles are inserted on the greater and lesser trochanter, respectively. The lateral and medial epicondyles articulate with the tibia and the trochlear groove accommodates the patella (kneecap).

The term "femoral" means relating to the femur or to the thigh, as in femoral artery or femoral nerve.

Fracture of the femur

The symptoms, treatment, and possible complications of a fracture of the femur depend on whether the bone has broken across its neck or across the shaft.

Fracture of the neck of the femur

This type of fracture, often called a broken hip, is commonly in elderly people, especially in women suffering from osteoporosis and is usually associated with a fall. This incidence of this type of fracture doubles approximately every seven years after the age of 65, so that by the age of 90 one woman in four has suffered this type of fracture.

In a fracture of the neck of the femur, the broken bone ends are often considerably displaced; in such cases there is usually severe pain in the hip and groin (made worse by movement) and the leg cannot bear...