Compound or Simple Fractures
If you participate in physical activities such as contact sports or riding a bicycle, then you are at a higher risk of having an injury that includes a broken bone. Falling down or receiving a strong blow to the body can fracture a bone in different ways. A simple fracture involves having a bone that is cracked or that breaks into two pieces. Alternatively, a compound fracture is more dangerous because one or both pieces of the broken bone break through the skin.
Specific Types of Fractures
A physician can examine you along with collecting an X-ray to determine what type of fracture is present. There are specific types of fractures, including:
- Avulsion – breaks caused by a ligament or muscle pull
- Hairline – partial breaks of a bone
- Stress – fractures caused by strain or repetitive motion
- Longitudinal – breaks that occur along the length of bones
- Transverse – breaks that occur across the width of the bones
How Can You Know That You Have a Broken Bone?
If you have a compound fracture, then it is obvious because you will see the bones poking through your skin, and the skin or underlying tissues will bleed. This is also a painful type of fracture, but with closed fractures, you may not understand if you have a sprain or a broken bone.
Here are some of the symptoms of a fracture:
- Immobility of the body part
- Bruising and swelling of the skin over the bone
- Intense pain while trying to stand or lift an object
- Pain in the body part
Children are less likely to break a bone because their bones are softer while senior citizens can break a bone easily due to the natural aging process.
What Is the Treatment for Bone Fractures?
For minor fractures, a physician adjusts the bones into the correct positions before providing a cast or a splint. However, many fractures require repair with surgery to place the bones in the correct locations or to add metal pins, rods, screws, or plates to the bones. After hospitalization, you will wear a cast for several weeks while the bones heal. Fractures in the hips, neck, or back are particularly dangerous, and you should call paramedics immediately for assistance to avoid additional damage to the body’s nerves or organs. For simple fractures, it is okay to go to an urgent care clinic for diagnosis and treatment.
Come into WellCare
If you have broken or fractured a bone then it is imperative that you get immediate medical care. Come into WellCare Urgent Care center in Grand Rapids so that we can give you the treatment you need. We offer same-day appointments at both our Cascade and Leonard locations.
