Choosing a chair after a femur fracture is not simply a matter of finding a higher seat or a model that helps you stand up. It means understanding whether that chair allows the person to sit down, rest and get back on their feet in the way intended for them, at that stage of their recovery.
The question to bring to the trial session is a practical one: “With the instructions we have been given, can this seat be used?” The type of treatment, the weight allowed on the leg and any movement restrictions to observe come first. Only then are height, depth, supports and adjustments compared. The chair becomes part of the recovery pathway; it does not decide it.
In brief
To assess a chair after a femur fracture, start from the written instructions and from the movement the physiotherapist has already taught. Check the seat with the person, not just the measurements in the catalogue. Sit-to-stand assistance, vertical height adjustment and recline do different jobs: having a motor does not give permission to put weight on the leg or to change position beyond what has been allowed. The result to aim for is a seating set-up that is consistent with recovery and with life at home.
Orthopaedic instructions come before the chair
The word “femur” does not describe a single operation. For fractures of the proximal part, near the hip, treatment may involve internal fixation or a joint replacement. The choice depends on the fracture and on the person’s condition. Weight-bearing instructions, too, must be understood within the person’s own care pathway, not inferred from an acquaintance’s experience. [1]
Gather what the assessment needs: how much weight is allowed on the leg, which mobility aid is planned and whether any limits on movement or position have been given. When a sentence is not clear, ask the ward or the professional in charge to translate it into a concrete activity: sitting down, moving to the edge of the seat, standing up, getting back to bed.
It is also useful to note when those instructions will be reviewed. A temporary restriction does not become a permanent characteristic of the person; in the same way, a date on the calendar does not give permission to go beyond it without the planned check-up.
For the organisational side — who will be there, how to coordinate discharge and what information to share — there is a dedicated guide to preparing the return home after a hospital stay. The point here is different: comparing how the seat works with what has actually been allowed.
Height and depth: choosing a high seat is not enough
The measurement given in the technical data sheet is a starting point. During the assessment, what also matters is how the person sits in the seat: where the pelvis ends up, which supports they are able to use and how far they need to shift to prepare the movement they have been taught.
A chair that seems high may turn out to be unsuitable if it is too deep for that person. A very soft surface may behave differently from the one tried during rehabilitation. That is why it is useful to describe the seat already used with the physiotherapist and compare it with the model being proposed, rather than relying only on how soft it feels.
In their information on recovery after a hip replacement, Geneva University Hospitals advise avoiding seats that are too low. That guidance, however, concerns that specific pathway: it does not set a height in centimetres that applies to every femur fracture. [2]
Do not add stacked cushions or makeshift risers to reach a height you have read about online. Take the specific difficulty to the professional and ask which configuration to assess. A cushion that has already been prescribed must also be taken into account when comparing with the new surface.
Sit-to-stand assistance and vertical height adjustment do not do the same job
The rise function changes the chair’s configuration to accompany the transition to a standing position. Vertical height adjustment, on the other hand, changes the height of the seat but is not that same movement. Sollevita distinguishes between these functions in its product materials. [4]
The distinction matters above all when the family says: “We need something that lifts them up.” You need to clarify whether you are looking for help to stand up, a different height for seated activities, or conditions better suited to a transfer that has already been defined.
The movement of the motor is not the same as permission to put weight on the leg. If weight-bearing is limited, the rise function must be assessed within that limitation, with the planned aid and support. It is not appropriate to try it out alone to see whether the person “can manage anyway”.
To find your way around the terminology, you can read about the differences between the chair’s movements. When trying the chair, ask to see the relevant movements separately: a general demonstration of all the functions does not answer the post-operative question.
From the instructions received to the questions to ask
This table is for preparing the discussion. It does not interpret the discharge instructions and does not give the go-ahead for use. Where an answer is missing, write “to be clarified”: that is more useful information than a guess.
| What you need to know | Question about the chair | Main contact |
|---|---|---|
| Weight allowed on the leg | Is the planned movement compatible with sit-to-stand assistance? | Orthopaedic surgeon and physiotherapist |
| Movement or position restrictions to observe | Which seat adjustments can be used? | Professional overseeing the recovery |
| Method already taught for sitting down and standing up | Can the person apply it on this seat? | Physiotherapist, with a product check |
| Planned aid and support | Can they be used in the space and with the configuration proposed? | Professional and technical contact |
| Follow-up check | Which questions should be taken to the review? | Care team |
The table is an editorial tool, not a validated clinical instrument. The Sollevita Team describes the product; the healthcare professional assesses its use within the person’s pathway. Keeping these roles separate avoids commercial answers to clinical questions.
Recline and legrest: finding a permitted position
Taking a break in the living room can be an important goal: being with the family, reading, regaining part of everyday life. To choose the resting position, however, it is not enough to check that the backrest goes down or that the legrest comes up.
Ask how the legs should be supported and which changes of position are planned. If hip precautions have been given, take them into account when assessing the recline. Do not automatically apply to everyone the same rules picked up from an article about joint replacement.
Sollevita includes resting adjustments and a 180° lie-flat position. This is a mechanical capability of the product, not the position that must necessarily be used after a fracture. [4] Having a function available is useful when it matches a real need and a verified use.
Do not use the chair to replace the movement programme on your own initiative with longer periods of sitting. Recovery at home includes the activities and exercises set by the physiotherapist. [3]
How to prepare a useful trial without turning it into an exercise
The trial should answer one question at a time. You can start by comparing measurements with instructions, without immediately asking the person to stand up. If a trial with the person is not yet appropriate, gather the technical data and agree on how to proceed.
When the professional considers the assessment possible, look at the whole usual sequence: reaching the seat, settling in, using the supports and getting up to leave it. A final position that seems comfortable is not enough if the way of getting there is not the one intended.
Bring the footwear, the aid and any supports actually used, in line with the instructions received. Also ask how the controls will be handled: by the person or by whoever is providing care, and with what explanation.
Note down concrete observations, not general ratings. “The handset is out of reach” or “we can’t compare the depth with the seat used on the ward” are points that can be checked. There is no need for repeated trials to the point of exhaustion, new manoeuvres or demonstrations to be completed despite pain.
Reassessing the seat as recovery changes
The useful question at the next check-up is not just “Are they better?”. It could be: “Is the way of sitting down still the one intended?”, “Has the help needed changed?” or “Does this adjustment still serve a purpose during the day?”.
The model chosen today should also be assessed against the activities the person hopes to do after the initial phase. This does not mean predicting recovery or buying functions on the strength of a promise: it means distinguishing the present need from one that is only assumed.
New pain, a sudden worsening or a difficulty that was not there before should be reported to the care team. After a further fall, severe hip pain or being unable to put weight on the leg calls for urgent medical help, not an adjustment of the chair. [3, 5]
Keep your questions for the check-up, but do not put off a sudden problem until that appointment. For questions about the controls, contact your product support contact; for changes in the person’s condition, the healthcare team remains the point of reference.
Where Sollevita comes into the assessment
The features of the Sollevita care riser recliner make it possible to compare adjustments, supports and configurations against a specific request. Adjustable height, side access and different resting positions are elements to be examined, not reasons to assume suitability after any operation. [4]
A useful discussion might start like this: “We need a seat for this activity; the physiotherapist has specified this method; we need to check these two points.” That is a more effective request than “we’re looking for the best chair for a broken femur”.
The advantage to check is a concrete one: being able to use a seating set-up at home that is consistent with the recovery pathway, with controls that are easy to understand, and without changing the instructions received on your own initiative.
Reference sources
[2] Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) — Total hip replacement: practical advice (in French)
[4] Sollevita / La Castellana — Product documentation
Features taken from the documentation provided to the editorial team; the link leads to the product page, not to a clinical verification.
The health sources support the principles referred to; they do not recommend or certify Sollevita. Tables and examples are editorial content, not clinical tests or documented cases.
Start from the instructions, then compare the chair
Tell the Sollevita Team how the seat should be used and which aspects you need to check with the physiotherapist. You will be able to compare the relevant features without choosing only on the basis of height or the number of movements. The aim is to prepare a concrete assessment that respects the person and their recovery pathway.
