Finally, if nerve damage is suspected, nerve conduction studies can be used to check for any damaged nerves. Your doctor will also ask how the injury occurred, when the pain started, and whether the pain has been getting worse. This will help your doctor decide whether to check for additional complications, such as a disruption of blood flow. The treatment for a fracture depends on the type of injury, the location of the injury, and its severity.
Bones heal themselves by producing new bone tissue to repair the fracture. The new bone is soft at first, and so it needs to be protected. Usually a fracture is immobilized to protect the new, soft bone tissue. Your doctor can immobilize the bone using options that include:. These devices can help keep the bone aligned while it heals.
They also make it more difficult for you to accidently use the injured bone. For a small bone like a finger or toe, the fracture can be immobilized by wrapping it with a soft wrap or a splint.
The realignment may be done without surgery, and is called closed reduction. This often requires a local anesthetic and painkillers. Sometimes surgery will be required to reposition the injured bone. This is called open reduction. The surgeon may also need to insert the following into your bone to help surgically align the bone:.
Hip fractures almost always require surgery to promote faster and better healing. Some limb fractures may need traction, a gentle pulling of the muscles and tendons around the broken bone in order to realign the bone. The traction can be created with a system of weights and pulleys that are mounted on a metal frame over your bed. The healing time depends on the location and severity of the break. Your age and general health will also affect your recovery time. You may have a physical therapy program and exercises designed to build up muscle strength and joint flexibility in the injured area.
Most fractures heal without complications. Keeping your bones healthy is important at every age. This means getting enough calcium from your diet and doing weight-bearing exercises to keep your bones strong. Weak bones break more easily. After age 40, everyone begins to lose bone mass. Your genetic makeup determines your peak bone mass, but diet and exercise make a big difference in keeping your bones healthy as you age.
Read more: 5 Fun water exercise that seniors can do together ». The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons recommends that both men and women over the age of 40 have:. If you are a woman and have gone through menopause, you should increase your calcium to 1, milligrams a day.
This is because hormonal changes decrease bone strength, which can lead to osteoporosis and increased risk for fractures. At any age, daily weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, are necessary for bone health.
Go To Ortho provides immediate X-rays on-site at your walk-in appointment. Treatment often involves resetting the bone in place and immobilizing it in a cast or splint to give it time to heal. At Go To Ortho, casting is done on-site. Depending on the severity of swelling, an immediate cast can be provided at your walk-in appointment. If your injury requires surgery, we can schedule your procedure with one of our surgeons or an affiliated surgeon at any one of a number of area hospitals convenient for you.
If you have a broken bone, you may hear or feel a snap or a grinding noise as the injury happens; there may be swelling, bruising, or tenderness around the injured area; or you may feel pain when you put weight on the injury, touch it, press it, or move it. A cast is custom-made with fiberglass or plaster and wraps all the way around the injured area. Instead, it is held in place with a flexible bandage, and it can be easily removed or adjusted.
Stress fractures can be described as very small slivers or cracks in the bone, and are sometimes referred to as hairline fractures.
Stress fractures most frequently occur in weight-bearing bones, such as the tibia bone of the lower leg , metatarsals and navicular bones bones of the foot. For hairline fractures, you should elevate the extremity and rest while the bone heals itself. You should also ice the affected area for 24 to 48 hours and reduce your activity. For pain, you may use NSAIDs nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen, naproxen, or aspirin.
A bone fracture may fail to heal if a patient has certain risk factors such as diabetes, anemia, older age, and tobacco use. A bone that fails to heal is called a nonunion, and a bone that takes longer to heal than normal is called a delayed union. For a bone to heal properly, it needs satisfactory stability, ample blood supply, and adequate nutrition through a balanced diet.
Fractures linked to osteoporosis most often occur in the spine. These spinal fractures, called vertebral compression fractures — occur in nearly , patients each year.
Other fractures linked to osteoporosis include broken hips and wrists. Osteoporosis does not affect the healing process of a fractured bone.
If you have a fracture, it generally takes 6 to 12 weeks to heal. Although generally rigid, bones can weaken over time and become more susceptible to fracturing. Fractures may occur lengthwise, crosswise, or in multiple pieces.
Similarly, the underlying causes of bone breaks varies. The most common fractures are illustrated here along the femur. Fractures may occur lengthwise, crosswise and sometimes in multiple pieces.
Compound open fracture. The bone may pierce the skin at the time of the fracture. Transverse fracture. When the bone breaks in a horizontal line. Oblique fracture.
When the bone has a diagonal or angled break. Comminuted fracture.
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