American family physician
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Hip fractures cause significant morbidity and are associated with increased mortality. Women experience 80% of hip fractures, and the average age of persons who have a hip fracture is 80 years. Most hip fractures are associated with a fall, although other risk factors include decreased bone mineral density, reduced level of activity, and chronic medication use. ⋯ Rehabilitation is critical to long-term recovery. Unless contraindicated, bisphosphonate therapy should be used to reduce the risk of another hip fracture. Some patients may benefit from a fall-prevention assessment.
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When choosing an infiltrative anesthetic agent, the type of procedure, the length of time required for anesthesia, and the pharmacodynamics of each medication are important considerations. Distraction techniques and buffering with sodium bicarbonate can be used to decrease the pain associated with injection. Local cutaneous infiltration is the most commonly used anesthetic technique and involves direct injection into the area requiring anesthesia. ⋯ Nerve blocks target the innervation to a specific area and are useful on the face and digits. Using easily identifiable landmarks, blockade of the supraorbital, supratrochlear, infraorbital, and mental nerves can provide site-specific anesthesia. Dorsal and palmar or plantar digital nerve blocks can be performed at a variety of locations on the hands and feet.