Hip fractures are a source of significant morbidity and mortality. Incidence increases substantially with age, rising for men and women, respectively, from 22.5 and 23.9 per 100,000 populations at age 50, to 630.2 and 1,289.3 per 100,000 populations by age 80. Short-term mortality rates are high and range from 25 percent for women to 37 percent for men in the first year following a hip fracture. Furthermore, a large proportion of those patients who...