Femur Stress Fracture

@mlledaffodil
Broke my femur in Jan had titanium rod surgery and the surgeon refused to admit to Fosomax being the culprit. Was on it from 2016 thru 2019. It stays in the body years AFTER stopping the meds, continues to take from the femurs to nourish the hips and pelvic region. Even with exercise, proper nutrition and taking ALL the proper supps, it still snapped like a dry branch in mid fall, not when I hit the ground.

I had titanium rod surgery in January for right femur. I'm walking with a cane now, but having a knee problem but complicated by possible injury during the fall so, somewhat different. I may have to have arthroscopic surgery to repair knee damage. Everything is very tight. So far only able to get 85% ROM back. anything past that causes me to be down for days with pain. Not good for progress. My thigh is tight, the quad, the t band, hamstrings. I can work the hamstrings but the quad won't give and the T band is tight and tender. Lots of tender soreness around where the screws are and a nasty scar just below kneecap is as hard as a rock, not like the fleshier scars on upper thigh and lower thigh. It's been difficult to break up.
Also, they had to insert a 20lb traction device the night before the surgery to pull my quad and keep it stretched for the surgery. Whether this is a player in my knee problem, I have no idea.
I begin outpatient PT next week. I've been told anywhere from 6 mos to a year for full recovery.

I had a femur stress fracture and rod inserted to stabilize leg. It took a 6-8 months of PT rehab to get back to “almost” normal. My leg is still week and I have lots of tightness in IT band after two years.

@JustinMcClanahan When my femur broke (July 15, 2026) I was transferred to Mayo and several of the doctors told me it was a result of Fosamax. I'm currently in the process of filing a lawsuit because my doctors neglect to tell me the possibility of a high femur fracture and/or break. If proper education is given when they put you on medication, a lot more people would pay attention or look for a substitute for Fosamax.

I currently have extreme pain in the front of my hip...started last night...and of course am concerned about atypical femur fracture. Was on Fosamax for about a year (with 2 small breaks because of bone pain in various body parts; doctors order); have moved onto Reclast (a year ago) and yesterday extreme pain started near front of (replaced) hip. Bone pain has been on and off since infusion (after April mainly stopped). Doctor says infusion does not cause bone pain after a couple of weeks (not what the Novartis drug literature says). Could be of course psoas muscle problem, bursitis, tendinitis, replaced hip problem, pulled muscle, OR bisphosphonate side effect. Not sure what to do or who to see; tomorrow if not settled down I guess the surgeon's office who replaced my hip?? to make sure not fractured? I know it is "rare" but...

Jozer, you need imaging. A CT would be better than an MRI even without metal parts for finer bone detail. Ask any of your current physicians to order the CT with attention to hairline fracture. Even if it is rare, even if the CT is clear of the evidence of fracture. You might best not take the risk of advancement of a fracture or a loose hip screw. We'll pray for a minor muscle pull.

@jozer Yes - the surgeon can x-ray to determine if there is a fracture, or some other problem with the replaced joint. Then you proceed from there.

If they rule out a fracture, are you willing to ask for physical therapy (PT) to strengthen the surrounding muscles? My (replaced) hips tell me when I have slacked off on stretching and exercise.

@sueinmn thank you and yes, PT has been helpful in the past…and have gone to pt for osteoporosis; lot of the same exercises I’ve done after hip replacement! I did do a new move in weight/aerobics class so probably did something wrong. Just constant concern with osteo and meds and their side effects.

@sueinmn, x-ray can easily miss a hairline fracture, even MRI can miss a hairline fracture. AFF begins as a hairline fracture that can look like additional bone. A CT will show soft tissue effects that might be causing the pain.

@gently True, but an x-ray is the first "line of defense" and works 80-90% of the time.
(https://msk-radiology.com/trauma/trauma-hip-thigh.html & other links)
It is usually not necessary to jump to scarce and more expensive diagnostic tools right away. And insurance often declines to pay for more sophisticated imaging if the x-ray is not done first.

If there is still a question, the doctor and patient can decide what to do next.