Objective To explore the injury characteristics in elderly patients with traumatic fracture and investigate the risk factors for deep vein thrombosis. Methods A total of 1046 elderly patients with traumatic fracture admitted in our hospital from January 2012 to June 2016 were enrolled in this study. According to the occurrence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) within 1 week after operation, they were divided into DVT group (n=132) and non-DVT group (n=914). Clinical data were analyzed by SPSS statistics 17.0. The differences were compared by t test or Chi-square test respectively. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the risk factors of DVT in traumatic fracture patients. Preoperative D-dimer, fibrinogen (FIB) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were assessed for predictive value of DVT by using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results Among the 1046 elderly patients, the top cause of injury was falling (20.9%,219/1046) and the incidence of DVT was 12.6% (132/1046). The main manifestations were limb swelling, varicosis, pain and tenderness. The statistically significant factors screened by single factor analysis were further analyzed by multivariate logistic regression analysis, and the results showed that ≥ 70 years old (OR=2.725, 95%CI 1.842-4.027), hypertension (OR=1.584,5%CI 1.163-2.158), falling injury (OR=3.142,5%CI 2.106-4.685), hip fracture (OR=2.847,5%CI 1.875-4.326), comminuted fracture (OR=2.054,5%CI:1.463-2.884), at least 3 fractures (OR=2.162, 95%CI 1.572-2.976), post fracture shock (OR=3.063,5%CI:2.074-4.527), operation time over 2 h (OR=2.151, 95%CI 1.518-3.046), D-dimer ≥3.5 mg/L (OR=2.396,5%CI:1.668～3.442), FIB ≥6.0 g/L (OR=1.638, 95%CI:1.274-2.106) and CRP ≥26.0 mg/L (OR=1.084,5%CI 1.012-1.468) were independent risk factors for DVT in senile patients after traumatic fracture. When the optimal threshold of D-dimer was 3.25 mg/L area under the curve (AUC)=0.736, 95%CI 0.672～0.806], the sensitivity and specificity were 87.2% and 58.3%, respectively. When FIB had the optimal threshold of 5.84 g/L (AUC=0.682,5%CI 0.617-0.754), the sensitivity and specificity were 78.5% and 62.5%, respectively. When CRP had the optimal threshold of 26.73 mg/L (AUC=0.705,5%CI 0.635-0.783), the sensitivity and specificity were 81.3% and 55.2%, respectively. Conclusion The incidence of DVT is quite high in the elderly patients with traumatic fracture. Since there are many risk factors for DVT, preventive measures should be taken to reduce the occurrence of DVT in high-risk groups.