$splinting humerus fracture$

$splinting humerus fracture$

What radiological investigations should be ordered?.

How common are they and how do they occur?.

By taking bone from here, the new cells encourage the non-union to start to heal naturally.See also: Humeral shaft fractures - Fracture clinics It can be quite sore though for a few weeks after the surgery. You won’t miss the bone from here and it re-grows. This is the lip of bone where your trouser bet sits. I would take your own bone from your iliac crest. Often the surgeon will suggest bone-grafting of the fracture site. There’s no guarantee it’ll heal just because you’ve had surgery but the chances of it healing are good. Of course, a risk from surgery for non-union is non-union itself. Stabilising means holding it still while it heals and that can be with a nail or a plate (as above) although my preference is usually a plate in this non-union situation. Surgical treatment of a non-union involves opening up the fracture site, removing scarred tissue from the fracture and stabilising the bone. If the non-union is not very troublesome it can be left alone and this would be reasonable in someone who is quite a high risk surgical candidate. Once this has been declared there are 2 options. Sometimes it is obvious and the arm moves at the fracture site, a so-called pseudo-arthrosis. The two main factors most surgeons will take into account when deciding if a non-union has occurred are pain levels of the patient and X-ray findings.

$splinting humerus fracture$

This can be due to biology (the natural process of bone healing doesn’t seem to have worked) or mechanics (too much or not enough movement at the fracture site). Heavier use of the arm and above-the-shoulder movement usually resumes at about 2-3 months.ĭespite surgeons’ best efforts, sometimes bone just doesn’t seem to want to heal. After about a month a sling may no longer be necessary and you can use your arm for gentle activity. You must keep your wound dry in the bath or shower for 2 weeks to allow it to heal. However, complications can occur and those are infection, nerve injury, stiffness of the shoulder and/or elbow and of course, non-union of the bone.Īfter the surgery you will still need a sling but not usually a brace or plaster cast. Again, once the bone heals, the nail is redundant but the nail can remain in place long term.Īs for whether you’ll be offered a nail or a plate, there are some fractures that lend themselves to one method of treatment more than the other, but also surgeon experience and preference will play a part.īoth methods of fixation have a good chance of helping your bone to heal swiftly and comfortably and without complication. Screws are placed through the bone and the nail at the top and bottom to stop the nail twisting inside the bone. A nail is a long rod which is put in from the shoulder and threaded down towards the elbow and it sits inside the central canal of the bone (the medullary cavity). Once the bone has healed the plate is redundant but it can remain inside the body and wouldn’t usually be a problem. A plate is a long piece of metal with holes in for screws and this acts as an internal splint. Both are applied under general anaesthetic and the operations take about 1-2 hours. The two options for surgical management of these injuries are a plate or a nail. If the bone doesn’t heal, a non-union is declared but I wouldn’t declare that until 5-6 months has been reached. Total treatment time is usually a round 3-4 months. Once pain settles and the X-ray shows signs the bone is starting to heal, the brace can be discontinued. The brace would typically be worn for about 2 months.

$splinting humerus fracture$

The advantages of these over plaster casts are they are lighter, can be removed in some circumstances and also some movement of the elbow, which helps prevent stiffness. Whether or not it can be removed during your treatment depends on the individual case and this should be discussed with your surgeon. The most common way of managing a humeral fracture non-operatively would be to use a brace which is a removeable, Velcro strap with metal struts inside it. This means that even if the bone heals at a non-anatomic angle, this doesn’t tend to alter the appearance of the arm nor reduce the function. Traditionally it’s felt that the humerus usually heals very well and the bone can tolerate a fair degree of malunion (angulation at the fracture site).

$splinting humerus fracture$

Splinting humerus fracture