In fact, most people will suffer from two broken bones throughout their life. After your therapy is complete, you can still perform your strengthening exercises to continuously improve your range of motion.īroken bones are common injuries. In physical therapy, you will have the proper tools to regain strength in your wrist and return to normal. When the cast is removed, your arm will look skeletal, which is perfectly normal.
Your wrist may be in a cast for about six weeks, which is more than enough time for muscle atrophy and overall weakness. Without it, you run the risk of your joint stiffening which can have lifelong complications. Physical therapy is an important step in your recovery. If it is nondisplaced, a cast is usually enough, and no other treatment is needed other than physical therapy. Whether the ulna is also broken or if the median nerve is painful plays a pivotal role in treatment options, which can include a cast or surgery. The break can be displaced or nondisplaced, which will affect treatment. The bone near the wrist breaks, and immobilization is important. This can happen in a fall, playing sports, or in a car accident. They usually occur from falling on an outstretched hand, where the hand naturally wants to brace itself for impact. They are referred to as greenstick fractures because it resembles when you are trying to break a small green branch on a tree and it bends more than it breaks.ĭistal radius fractures are very common injuries in both children and adults. Children’s bones are softer and more flexible than an adult’s bones, which makes them more susceptible to this injury. Greenstick fractures–or a fracture where the bone is bent but the break is incomplete–are common in children.
#OPEN VS CLOSED FRACTURE CRACK#
Broken bones do not always crack through the side, they can crack parallel to the bone’s long axis, such as in linear fractures.Ĭhildren oftentimes suffer from broken bones and are able to heal quickly due to their age. They are sometimes referred to as incomplete fractures because the bone cracks but does not break all the way through. Nondisplaced fractures are often closed and do not move out of alignment.
It is always best to call a doctor or go to the nearest emergency room if you suspect you have broken your arm or wrist. A broken bone will heal, but complications from not seeking medical attention right away may not. Even worse, osteomyelitis–a bone infection, can occur. Damage to the blood vessels or nerves can occur, or an infection of the surrounding tissue. This is much more serious in an elderly adult than a child who should be able to bounce back relatively quickly.ĭepending on the location and subtype, fractures can be extremely serious and have dangerous complications if not treated properly. A fall can result in a comminuted fracture due to the bones shattering into several pieces. Older adults have brittle bones and a fall can be much more detrimental.
#OPEN VS CLOSED FRACTURE SKIN#
An open fracture may break the skin and then recede into the body, so it is important to check your wrist or arm for blood.Īs humans age, our bones become more susceptible to breakage, although fractures are more common in children. If the bone has punctured the skin, you need to seek medical attention right away.
These fractures can be extremely painful because it may be visible through the skin a broken wrist from a hard fall can shove the broken radius closer to your body, resulting in an oblong section of bone poking your skin with brute force.ĭisplaced fractures can be open or closed, simply meaning that the skin is either intact or broken through. The broken bone snaps out of place, and the broken ends do not line up correctly. Below displaced and nondisplaced are explained.ĭisplaced fractures are generally more complex because the bones are out of alignment, or they may be in several pieces. Hand, wrist, and arm fractures are common at all ages, but the seriousness may vary. These categories are accompanied by several subtypes of breaks according to the injury. When the bones are out of alignment, surgery is more likely.īroken bones are generally placed in four categories: displaced, nondisplaced, open, and closed. Whereas in nondisplaced fractures the bone does not always crack all the way through, displaced fractures are out of alignment. The moment of impact upon injury generally makes a difference in the type of fracture that takes place.ĭisplaced and nondisplaced fractures differ in the breakage of the bone. Fractures come in many forms, from simple fractures such as stress fractures and nondisplaced fractures to more complex breaks like comminuted and displaced fractures.
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