Bone Fracture: A Quick Guide To Types, Symptoms, and More

Fractures are the breakages of the bones, and like every other illness, can affect anyone, including children, young, elderly and other individuals. It can be caused by an injury, carrying excessive weight or diseases. In any of such cases, a broken bone needs attention and a correct treatment plan for a good result. Learning more about the types, symptoms, causes, and treatments of bone fractures can help you manage the injury and step onto the path to recovery.

In this blog on bone fractures, let’s get to know the general bone fractures and have a closer look at greenstick fractures, a specific type common in children.

More on Bone Fracture

Bone fracture describes a condition where any part of the bone has been broken partly or completely. In other words, fractures are caused by a force that the bone in question is unable to withstand. This may be as a result of a one-time event, repetitive stress or other diseases like osteoporosis. Bone fractures can be categorised as single or multiple ones and can present themselves in a minimally invasive fissure to a completely shattered bone.

Fractures can be classified depending on the place of the break, the kind of break and whether the skin has broken. Most bone fractures can be cured if treated appropriately, however, problems such as delayed bone healing, infections, and malunion can occur if the conditions are not well handled.

Bone Fractures Types You Should Know About

Different kinds of bone fractures are categorised according to the type and severity of the damage they cause.

• Closed (Simple) Fracture: The bone is fractured but not to the level where it shows an external puncture on the skin.
• Open (Compound) Fracture: The structure is fractured, and the bone may cut the skin, which leads to severe infection.
• Complete Fracture: The break is a clean fracture that is characterised by the complete shard of the bone being separated into two or more halves.
• Incomplete Fracture: The bone will crack, yet the breakage is executed totally and the bones are not separated into two different parts.
• Comminuted Fracture: The bone crushes and breaks into several small pieces.
• Transverse Fracture: A breakage in the form of a line running across the bone in the manner of a straight and horizontal manner.
• Oblique Fracture: In this fracture, there is a diagonal breakage that happens across the bone.
• Spiral Fracture: Here, the breakage circles around the bone as a result of a twisting force.
• Greenstick Fracture: This happens due to a partial breakage. One side of your bone tends to bend while the other side breaks. This type is prevalent in childhood because children have softer and more brittle bones than adults.

Bone Fractures Symptoms You Should Watch Out

During the initial stages of a fracture, the signs may be mild or hard to notice, depending on the extent of the breakage. However, some common signs include:

• Pain: Localised pain that is aggravated by motion or pressure on the affected area in addition to having a deformity at the fracture site in a limb.
• Swelling: There can also be an increase in the size of the injured tissue and it might develop a sensitivity to touch on its surface.
• Bruising: Swelling or even the development of a bruise typically emerges around the location of the fracture.
• Deformity: It may look twisted or shifted off-balance especially where the fracture has been severe.
• Crepitus: Crepitus is a scratchy, grating sound produced when a bone is moved.

To avoid worsening symptoms of a bone injury, get medical attention as soon as they develop.

Prevalent Bone Fracture Causes

There are different causes of bone fractures but it is more common among those experiencing trauma. Other causes include:

• Traumatic Injuries: Trauma can be caused by forceful incidents such as an accident, a fall or a direct blow that puts force on bones leading to fractures. These fractures can be witnessed in sports, and car accidents and sometimes result from work injuries.
• Overuse and Repetitive Stress: Stress fractures develop from repeated stress such as running and put much force on the bones. These are rife among athletes and dancers.
• Osteoporosis: Osteoporosis makes bones more delicate and likely to break, especially in elderly individuals. Most osteoporosis-related fractures commonly involve the hips, spine, and wrists.
• Medical Conditions: Secondary causes of osteoporosis related to other diseases include malignancy and neoplastic diseases that affect the skeletal system. Hiding metastases or infections leading to bone decalcification, like in tuberculosis or hormonal imbalances as seen in Cushing’s syndrome, results in bone weakening and the occurrence of pathological fractures with minimal force.

Knowledge of the reason behind the fracture will help the doctor know how to manage the situation to avoid further similar occurrences.

Bone Fracture Healing

Our bodies have an amazing mechanism for bone healing that unfolds naturally in various kinds of stages. Here is how our bodies try to heal our bone fractures. 

• Soft Callus Formation: During a few days to a few weeks, cells develop a soft callus from the collagen that surrounds the fractured area.
• Hard Callus Formation: The soft callus is then replaced by hard bone, known as a hard callus which actually fixes the fracture. This stage normally takes 6-12 weeks.
• Bone Remodeling: The process of bone remodelling is carried on for months and years, recreating as well as fortifying the newly formed bone. This stage also makes certain that the bone regains its normal appearance and is strong once more.

Age, general health, nutrition, type of fracture and many other aspects define the healing process. It is crucial to take good care, have enough rest and consult a doctor to avoid further issues.

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Bone Fractures Treatment

A bone fracture can be treated based on the type of fracture, fracture location, and its grade of severity. Treatment options include rehabilitation and the following:

• Immobilisation: The majority of the fractures are managed by using a cast, splint or brace which help in limiting movements as the bone heals. They retain the fragments in their reduced positions by the use of immobilisation and may be sufficient for simpler fracture cases.
• Traction: Traction is the constant pulling force applied to the bones to get them into the proper position is sometimes used before the application of this technique.
• Surgery: Open or comminuted fractures may also need surgical intervention to fix the position of the fragmented ends and use metal rods, plates or screws to fix the area. The method applied in this case is called open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF).

Bone Fracture Greenstick

Greenstick fracture is an ailment that affects children most frequently because the bones of kids are softer and more tender compared to adult bones. Greenstick fracture is a condition where the bone is bent on one side and is shattered on the other side; which is similar to bending a green twig. These fractures majorly occur in children aged below 10 years and are mostly caused by falls or injury.

Symptoms of Greenstick Fractures:

Swelling, redness, bruising around the area of operative fixations, and pain that ranges from a tingling sensation to severe pain when pressure is applied at the fracture site.

• Swelling or bruising.
• Limited range of motion.

Treatment for Greenstick Fractures:

Greenstick fractures require the bone to be placed in a cast or a splint. Occasionally before the application of the cast the bone will have to be put back into its proper position. In children, the period of healing is generally shorter taking into consideration the fact that they have rather a fast bone healing process. Most greenstick fractures can be treated without incidents where the involved bone gains complete healing.

Conclusion

Fractures of bone are a severe injury that should be treated right from the time when the mishap occurs. These breaks in the bones could be due to causes such as stress fractures (due to injury) or acute stress fractures (as a result of chronic illnesses) which makes the bones vulnerable to breaking.

Knowing what type of break it is, realising when it has occurred, and learning about bone repair are essential for the proper treatment. When it comes to greenstick fractures in children, special attention should be paid to the way the bone heals in order to prevent complications in the future. Fractures require appropriate medical management due to which most of the broken bones can regain full mobility through rest and exercising.

Bone Fractures FAQs