Hip & thigh Post-Fracture Rehabilitation
Femur Fracture
- Severe thigh or groin pain
- Inability to bear weight
- After fixation: marked weakness and stiffness
- Difficulty walking without an aid
Quick answer
A femur fracture is a break of the thigh bone, usually requiring surgical fixation. Rehabilitation restores weight-bearing, walking and strength, progressing according to the surgeon’s loading restrictions. Recovery typically takes four to six months, longer for hip fractures in older adults.
Typical recovery
4–6 months
A typical range, not a promise — how long it takes depends on how long it has been going on, and on what you do between appointments.
The femur is the strongest bone in the body. Breaking the shaft takes major force, usually a road accident. Fractures near the hip, by contrast, happen in older adults with reduced bone density from a simple fall — a very different injury in the same bone.
Rehabilitation follows the fixation
How much weight you may put through the leg, and when, is determined by the type of fracture and the fixation used. We work to the surgeon's protocol, and where none is written we contact them rather than guessing. Loading a fracture too early risks the fixation failing.
The phases
Early. Preventing complications — chest care, circulation, and gentle movement of the surrounding joints. Getting out of bed as soon as permitted, because immobility in older adults causes rapid decline.
Progressive loading. Moving through the permitted weight-bearing stages: non-weight-bearing to partial to full, walker to crutches to stick to unaided. Each step is progressed when the surgeon and the tissue allow.
Strength and function. Rebuilding the quadriceps and gluteal muscles, which waste substantially, restoring hip and knee range, retraining balance, and building walking distance.
Hip fractures in older adults
These deserve separate mention. Outcomes depend enormously on how quickly the person gets moving. Early mobilisation reduces complications and substantially improves the chance of returning to independent living. Falls assessment and bone health review are part of proper care, because the next fracture is preventable.
How long it takes
Four to six months for most, and longer where there were complications or where independence was already limited before the fracture.
Medically reviewed by Pooja Tyagi, BPT, MPT, Orthopaedic Physiotherapy · Last reviewed September 2026