Nonoperative treatment usually includes the placement of fracture bracing that will be replaced by a cylindrical brace Sarmiento brace three to four weeks later that fits the upper arm while leaving the elbow free. The doctor will tell you how long to wear the cast or splint and will remove it at the right time. It may take several weeks to several months for the broken arm to heal completely. Rehabilitation involves gradually increasing activities to restore muscle strength, joint motion and flexibility.
The patient must complete range of motion, strengthening and other exercises prescribed by the doctor on a daily basis. Rehabilitation will continue until the muscles, ligaments and other soft tissues perform normally. Surgery usually involves internal fixation of the fragments with plates, screws or a nail.
The rehabilitation differs slightly from nonoperative treatment, with no splints or cast. The patient is usually given a sling for comfort and arm support. Elbow exercises may be started immediately after surgery, while shoulder exercises may be delayed for a few weeks based on the fracture pattern.
Health Home Conditions and Diseases. If nerve damage has occurred there may be numbness, tingling, or weakness. If damage to the underlying blood vessels has occurred there may be bruising, bleeding, or the hands may appear cyanotic, or blue.
A careful history including the details of the traumatic event usually points to the diagnosis of a fracture. The physical exam will also reveal clues and will check for the presence of foreign bodies in the wound if present and assess whether the nerves and blood vessels in the area of injury are intact. Imaging studies are essential to the diagnosis of a fracture. X rays are used to examine the arm bones for the exact location and type of fracture sustained.
Sometimes a fracture is not immediately visible on X rays. These occult fractures are usually tiny cracks causing pain and disability without displacement of the bones or joints. CT or MRI must be used to diagnose fractures in these cases. Depending on the severity of the arm fracture, non-surgical or surgical methods may be employed to treat the fracture. If only one bone is broken, and it is not displaced, immobilizing the bone in a cast or splint may be all that is needed for the bone to heal itself.
Serial X rays will be ordered to make sure that the bone remains in proper alignment throughout the healing process. If the fracture causes the bones to come out of alignment, it may be possible for a physician to temporarily re-align the bones by reducing the fracture. This commonly occurs in the Emergency Department. In reduction, pain medication is given and the physician manually attempts to re-align the bones.
The arm is then immobilized in a splint and a follow up appointment with an Orthopedic Surgeon is made for the following day. If nerves or blood vessels of the arm are damaged, or if an open fracture is present, emergent surgical treatment is warranted. Most surgical treatment of arm fractures may be done in a timely, but non emergent fashion. If the skin is not broken, it may be advisable to give the splinted arm a few days for the swelling to go down and then attempt surgical repair.
In a procedure called Open Reduction with Internal Fixation surgical repair is achieved by using rods, pins or plates placed into the bones to hold them in proper position while the bones grow back together. With External Fixation severe fractures can be stabilized from the outside with a metal brace which wraps around the affected part of the arm.
This device, called a fixator, attaches the brace directly to bones of the arm via long screws inserted through the skin and the muscles of the arm to hold the bones in place while they heal.
Physical therapy follows once the cast or fixator is removed. This helps to return strength to the muscles of the arm which have atrophied during immobilization. Physical therapy is usually lasts for a period of six months. Knight will quickly diagnose your arm fracture and relieve your pain while stabilizing your fracture in a splint or cast and expediting surgical intervention if needed to restore fracture alignment. Surgery is performed in most of the forearm cases and usually performed through one or two incisions at different levels and sides of the forearm.
The fractures are reduced and held together with plates and screws. After surgery your forearm will be put in a short splint for comfort and protection. You will not be allowed to lift weight for six weeks after surgery. Health Home Conditions and Diseases. A forearm fracture can occur in one or both of the forearm bones. What is a forearm fracture? What are the different types of forearm fractures? When both bones are fractured at different levels and there is a joint injury at the wrist or elbow, these are described as Galeazzi or Monteggia fractures: Galeazzi facture: Most often a displaced fracture in the radius and a dislocation of the ulna at the wrist, where the radius and ulna come together.
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