A police officer is in hospital after his leg was broken in a confrontation with a man on the Gold Coast last night.

Police were pursuing the man along Ferry Road after a public nuisance complaint and had asked him to stop.

The altercation between the officer and the man brought nearby residents out onto their balconies.

Video obtained by 9NEWS shows one of the men run at the other, before both crash to the ground.

The police officer’s leg was badly broken in the tackle.

Paramedics took the officer to Gold Coast University Hospital where he remains in a stable condition.

The man was taken into custody.

The police union told 9NEWS this kind of injury was typical of that faced by police while doing their job.