Only a small number of conditions are commonly responsible for pathological fractures, including osteoporosis, osteomalacia, Paget's disease, Osteitis, osteogenesis imperfecta, benign bone tumours and cysts, secondary malignant bone tumours and primary malignant bone tumours.

This definition arises because a normal human being ought to be able to fall from standing height without breaking any bones, and a fracture, therefore, suggests weakness of the skeleton.

Pathologic fractures in children and adolescents can result from a diverse array of disorders namely; metabolic, endocrine, neoplastic, infectious, immunologic, and genetic skeletal dysplasias.

[4] Once a fracture has occurred, intramedullary fixation is the usual surgical management for certain long bones, such as the femur, tibia, and fibula.

[5] For pathological fractures in the setting of metastatic disease where there is a need for postoperative radiation, a carbon fiber implant may be preferred due to its radiolucency, allowing better visualization of the affected area on x-ray imaging.