Rehabilitation After a Femur Fracture in an Elderly Patient: What to Expect

I answer the most frequently asked questions of people over 65 who have suffered a fractured femur. Or those of their loved ones.

About rehabilitation and physio sessions for better recovery!

♻️ Last update: November 26, 2025
Written by Nelly Darbois, physiotherapist and scientific editor

Why do older people break their femurs more easily?

In the case of young people, a simple fall from his or her height usually doesn’t result in a bill.

For the elderly, however, a simple fall from a height puts them at greater risk of breaking a bone. Particularly the femur.

Why? For at least these 4 reasons.

🦴 Bone fragility due to osteoporosis

With age, bones become more fragile due to osteoporosis. Bone density decreases, making bones more susceptible to fracture even under low force.

💪 Loss of muscle strength

Muscles and soft tissues become weaker with age, reducing the body’s ability to absorb the impact of a fall and protect bones.

Particularly in the gluteal muscles and the muscles around the hip, which protect the femur.

🚶 Decreased balance and coordination

Elderly people may have reduced balance and coordination, which increases the risk of falling.

Once a person falls, they may be unable to mitigate the force of the impact, increasing the risk of fracture.

🦵 Anatomy of the femur

The femur is the longest and strongest bone in the human body.

During a fall, the force of the impact is often concentrated on the femur due to its position and size, making it more susceptible to breakage than other bones in the body.

What is the purpose of rehabilitation after a femur fracture in the elderly?

Physiotherapy sessions or a stay in a follow-up and rehabilitation center (SSR) are very often prescribed in France after a femur fracture.

From the very first session, your physiotherapist will carry out an assessment which will enable him/her to define personalized objectives with you. Depending on your fracture, but also your lifestyle, your priorities, your desires, etc., your physiotherapist will be able to help you achieve your goals.

Here are the main objectives of rehabilitation following a femur fracture in an elderly person, although perhaps other objectives will be more relevant in your case!

💊 Manage pain and discomfort associated with fracture or surgery.

It’s common to feel pain in the buttock, leg or back after a femur fracture. Your physiotherapist can discuss your options for relieving the pain.

Including non-medicated solutions, such as finding better sleeping or lying positions, putting on cold, etc.

🚶 Improve balance and coordination to regain greater independence and reduce the risk of future falls.

After a fall, some people experience post-fall syndrome. They find it harder to move around, are afraid of falling, or even have difficulty standing.

And some people already had equilibrium problems before the fall.

Physiotherapists can help you find the technical aids best suited to your needs. They can also prescribe them for you , so that they can be reimbursed by your health insurance and mutual insurance companies.

But also to identify exercises and facilities that will make it easier and safer for you to move around or set up in the most autonomous and appropriate way possible.

🔍 Increase mobility and flexibility of the affected leg to facilitate daily activities.

Following a femur fracture, your hip or knee may become a little stiff. Or even other joints.

Your physiotherapist can identify this and suggest exercises and facilities to prevent or treat stiffening.

🏋️‍♂️ Strengthen the surrounding muscles and soft tissues to support the femur and prevent future fractures.

Just as your joints can lose flexibility after a fracture, your muscles can also lose strength.

Often due to simple under-use, or because they have been injured in a fall or operation.

💪 Strengthen bone density to reduce the risk of subsequent fractures.

A little further away from the fracture, your physiotherapist can also review your usual lifestyle with you: how do you eat? How active are you?

Diet and physical activity are among the “natural remedies” for improving bone density and preventing the risk of fracture.

What are the different options for rehabilitation?

Depending on your state of health and lifestyle, rehabilitation can take place in a variety of settings.

🏥 Stay in a rehabilitation center (SSR).

In this case, it’s the hospital or your GP who makes the request via Trajectoires, a centralized system.

SSR stays are reserved for people who have lost a great deal of autonomy following a fall, and for whom a return home is difficult to envisage for the time being.

🏠 Physiotherapy sessions at home.

If you’ve returned home after your fracture but can’t come to the practice, your physiotherapist can come to you, even if the prescription doesn’t say “home physiotherapist”.

Provided, of course, that you can find a physiotherapist who can come to your home.

🧑‍⚕️ Physiotherapy sessions in private practice.

You can also travel to a private practice. By your own means, or with the help of a VSL or ambulance if you have a transport voucher.

Other professionals can also help. Occupational therapists, for example, can help you adapt your home.

When should rehabilitation begin?

In my experience, the sooner the better !

An appointment with a physiotherapist in the days following your fracture will enable you to take stock of what can be done at this stage.

This doesn ‘t necessarily mean you’ll start intensive rehabilitation!

We have some empirical data showing that people starting rehabilitation within 2 weeks of a femur fracture treated with a hip prosthesis recover better than those who start after that time (Masaracchio 2017).

When should I stop taking physiotherapy after a femur fracture?

There is no maximum duration for physiotherapy sessions. Unless otherwise indicated on the prescription, your physiotherapy prescription is valid “for life”, as long as your state of health requires it.

In general, it’s a good idea to stop physio sessions once you’ve regained an autonomy close to that which you had before the fracture.

Some will need as little as 2/3 weeks of physiotherapy supervision, while others will have sessions lasting several months.

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That’s all I wanted to say on the subject! Any questions or comments? See you in comments!