24
votes
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
You as an untrained bystander can do little to nothing.
Professionally trained paramedics could (as an example) pull the leg and thus remove tension between two bone membranes (periostei) and in a ...
- 6,930
7
votes
Is this a trick question about a fracture?
I also don't see any fracture in the scaphoid, but "fractures of the scaphoid are not visible in about 16% of cases on initial radiographs" (Clinical scaphoid fracture, PubMed, 2011).
When symptoms ...
- 15.9k
5
votes
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
So let's assume you're speaking of a large bone, like the arm (humerus, radius or ulna) or leg (femur, tibia or fibula), but not the skull, spine or pelvis.
A good rule of thumb: the larger the bone, ...
- 51
4
votes
Accepted
What are long term complications of mild to moderate leg length discrepancy?
Two Types of Leg Length Discrepancies (LLD)
Just a heads up it's pretty tough to give a general answer to such an involved area (I tried lol). I’m forced to leave quite a bit out as there are so many ...
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4
votes
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
It all depends on the bone that is (or might be) broken, and on the overall condition of the patient.
Call an ambulance for a fractured skull, vertebra or hip.
Call an ambulance for open fractures (...
- 141
3
votes
Accepted
Antibiotics only if fractured?
This is known as antibiotic prophylaxis. It is to prevent infection in the bone (osteomyelitis).
If the bone surface is intact, pathogens like bacteria cannot penetrate it easily, but in the presence ...
- 3,414
3
votes
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
If both legs are OK and there is no way they could have a spinal injury, you may well find it is quicker to get them to hospital in your car. Drive very slowly over bumps and around corners, do not ...
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2
votes
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
If you are untrained on this subject matter, the best practise is to do nothing about the fracture.* Even most certified first aiders are not trained to handle broken bones.
*By nothing I don't ...
- 149
2
votes
Is this a comminuted fracture?
I was going to say no because I was under the impression there was also a component of the fragment sizes in the definition (I'm not a specialist), but in doing a bit of research I appear to be wrong.
...
2
votes
Does a radiologist adjust the amount of radiation for each individual?
According to this Harvard Medical article, in order to x-ray an arm or leg the average dose is 0.001mSv with a range reported in literature of 0.0002—0.1mSv.
A lumbar spine x-ray would require an ...
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1
vote
Is their terminology for varying bone fracture severity?
So, as far as I am aware there is no specific grading of severity of fracture. Severity in fractures can be individual and based on age, debility, etc. Most classification systems I am aware of are ...
- 86
1
vote
Foot X Ray: Oblique vs Lateral View - Terminology points to Same or different?
Your first reference points out the difference between a lateral ankle view versus an oblique view. The oblique view is taken from a lateral position but the joint is tilted so that the rays travel ...
- 13.3k
1
vote
RTG Pisiform Fracture or Noise
Pisiform fractures like scaphoid fractures can be tricky to identify, and this is a good example of why! Even though I don't have a definitive yes/no answer, I wanted to answer this question as it is ...
- 5,814
1
vote
Accepted
Why does body movement still affect fractured bone when it is immobilized?
By immobilization of the elbow you are just keeping the elbow joint in place, which means the forearm does not move in the relation to the upper arm.
But there are other things that can move the ...
- 15.9k
1
vote
What to do if someone breaks a bone?
From personal experience I can definitely attest that a person with a broken arm can indeed (under reasonable circumstances) hobble to a car and be driven to the hospital (not sure which department, ...
- 11
1
vote
How long it takes to return to daily activities?
Your doctor would be the most qualified to answer this. I am not able to interpret x-rays, but I do know that fractures usually take 6-8 weeks to heal. That can differ based on a persons age, ...
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