Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L01044:reg:7
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L01044
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 7
Character Range: 1604–3528

7               Kind of injury, disease or death to which this Statement of Principles relates
(1)          This Statement of Principles is about pathological fracture and death from pathological fracture.
Meaning of pathological fracture
(2)          For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, pathological fracture:
(a)          means an acquired break of bone as a result of an applied force that ordinarily would not cause bone breakage in a healthy bone; and
(b)          includes:
                 (i)            acute vascular shock, acute compartment syndrome, or fat embolism resulting from the fractured bone;
                 (ii)         pathological fracture or insufficiency stress fracture due to focal bone weakness;
                 (iii)       pathological fracture or insufficiency stress fracture due to global bone weakness;
                 (iv)        periosteal, muscular, fascial, skin, nerve or vascular damage directly caused by the displaced fractured bone; and
                 (v)          wound infection as a result of penetration of the skin by bony fracture fragments (compound fracture).
Note 1: Pathological fractures are also known as secondary fractures, spontaneous fractures, fragility fractures, and minimal trauma fractures.
Note 2: Bone weakness includes decreased bone mineral density (osteoporosis), disarrangement of bone structure, and the presence of additional bone pathology.
Note 3: Clinical worsening could include fracture non-union but not an additional fracture. An additional fracture would require further invocation of the fracture SoPs.
Death from pathological fracture
(3)          For the purposes of this Statement of Principles, pathological fracture, in relation to a person, includes death from a terminal event or condition that was contributed to by the person's pathological fracture.
Note: terminal event is defined in the Schedule 1 – Dictionary.