Greater trochanter
Also called: hip bump, trochanter
What it means
The greater trochanter is the bony bump on the outer side of your upper thigh, part of the femur (thighbone), where hip muscles attach.
This is the exact spot most people land on during a sideways fall, making it central to how hip fractures happen.
The greater trochanter is the bony bump you can feel on the outside of your upper thigh, just below your hip. It's part of the femur (thigh bone) and serves as an attachment point for several hip muscles. This spot matters a lot in bone health because it's usually the exact point of impact when someone falls sideways.
Most hip fractures don't come from dramatic accidents. They happen from a simple sideways fall from standing height, landing directly on this bump. The force travels through the greater trochanter into the femoral neck, the narrower part of the thighbone just above it, which is often the weakest point in someone with low bone density.
Because of this, doctors look at two things together: how hard a fall might hit (influenced by balance, reflexes, and surroundings) and how strong the bone is at the femoral neck. Both matter. Improving balance and reducing fall risk, alongside supporting bone strength, both help lower the chances of a hip fracture at this vulnerable spot.
The outer hip bump is exactly where most people land in a sideways fall, central to hip fractures.
Where this leads
WordFalling onto this spot often leads to a break. Want to understand exactly what happens and why it affects mobility so much?
Where the Academy teaches it
This page is the short version. The lessons teach it in full, with the context around it and a quiz to lock it in.
Related words
The femoral neck is the angled part of bone joining your hip ball to your thigh bone shaft, and it's the most common…
The femoral head is the rounded, ball-shaped top of the thighbone (femur) that fits into the hip socket to form the…
The femur, or thigh bone, is the longest and strongest bone in the body, stretching from the hip to the knee and…
A hip fracture is a break at the femoral neck, the narrow part of bone connecting the hip joint ball to the thigh…
Fall risk is how likely you are to fall, and it matters because falling—not just weak bones—is the most common cause…
A fragility fracture is a broken bone caused by a fall or bump that normally wouldn't break a healthy bone, often at…
Education only, not medical advice. Decisions about tests, medications and treatment belong with your own doctor. OsteoStrong does not diagnose, treat or cure any disease.
