While watching her naughty kid doing his homework, the 31-week pregnant mother of second child accidentally fell and fractured her hip!

A mother of two who was over 31 weeks pregnant was chasing her eldest child to do her homework, but she missed the naughty child and accidentally fell, breaking her hip.

Due to the high risk of perioperative treatment for hip fracture in late pregnancy, 32-year-old Ms. Xiong was rushed by her family from Miluo to the First Department of Orthopedics of Hunan Provincial People's Hospital for treatment. At present, the patient has successfully completed the operation and will receive further treatment.

Considering that the patient was in the late stage of pregnancy, the fracture was located in the hip and the pain was severe, this type of fracture was an indication for emergency surgery. Improper or untimely treatment would affect the normal delivery of the mother and endanger the safety of the fetus. Therefore, under the command of Wang Jing, director of the Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, the team of deputy chief physician Jia Zhen, together with Lu Jiadai, chief resident of the Department of Obstetrics, and Huang Qian, deputy chief physician of the Department of Anesthesiology, formed an MDT multidisciplinary collaborative team.

After multidisciplinary discussion, the patient underwent a single closed reduction and internal fixation of the fracture under spinal anesthesia. This minimally invasive surgery uses only a few hollow nails to fix the fracture, leaving only a 3cm wound, with little trauma and fast recovery. This surgery and anesthesia method have the least impact on the patient and the fetus, and because the surgery is timely, it can also minimize the occurrence of fracture-related complications.

The patient felt the severe pain disappear immediately after the operation, and was able to resume bed activities and normal diet. The vital signs of the pregnant woman and fetus were stable. To ensure the safety of the fetus during the recovery period, the patient was transferred to the obstetrics department for further observation.

Deputy Director Jia Zhen said that due to the high weight in the late pregnancy and the limited body position due to the large belly, the difficulty of spinal anesthesia and surgical operation was greatly increased. Ms. Xiong was a young patient with femoral neck fracture, and the incidence of fracture nonunion and femoral head avascular necrosis was extremely high. In order to save the femoral head as much as possible, the medical team overcame difficulties and performed surgery on Ms. Xiong within 24 hours of her injury.

During the operation, it was found that Ms. Xiong had very porous bones. At the age of 32, she had the bones of a 70-year-old. Ms. Xiong was very surprised by this. She thought osteoporosis was a disease only for the elderly, so she had never been examined for osteoporosis before. However, she had been taking calcium tablets as prescribed by the doctor after she became pregnant, but she never exercised or got sun exposure.

Deputy Director Jia Zhen explained that pregnant women in the late stages of pregnancy are very likely to develop osteoporosis due to increased calcium consumption by fetal growth and changes in hormone levels in the body, so even slight violence can lead to fractures.

Head nurse Yang Chao, deputy chief nurse, told Ms. Xiong that calcium supplementation cannot be achieved by taking calcium tablets alone, and a "three-pronged approach" should be adopted:

First, eat foods rich in calcium, such as milk, dried shrimps, eggs, etc. There are also tips for taking calcium supplements during pregnancy, such as taking vegetables and fruits with vitamins to promote calcium absorption, and calcium absorption is better at night;

Second, ensure a certain amount of exercise. Suitable exercises during pregnancy include yoga, walking, swimming, etc.

Third, sunbathe often. The best time to sunbathe is in the morning and evening, with arms and calves exposed for 20-30 minutes.

At the same time, it is recommended that women planning to become pregnant have a bone density test before pregnancy. If bone mass or osteoporosis is found, intervention should be made as soon as possible. Mothers should maintain a calm mind during pregnancy. Mothers of second children should be calmer when helping their children with their homework. They should not chase or engage in strenuous activities, and should avoid sudden stops, sudden turns and other actions to reduce the occurrence of accidents.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Zhou Yi, Department of Orthopedics, Hunan Provincial People's Hospital

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(Edited by YT)