Fracture

Afracture is any break in a bone. The break may range in severity from a simple chip or a crack to a complete break or shattering of the bone. Fractures can occur anywhere on the surface of the bone, including across the surface of a joint such as the wrist or ankle. Fractures are caused by a direct blow, a fall, bone disease, or a twisting force as may occur in a sports injury. Although fractures often cause severe pain, they are seldom life-threatening.

The two basic types of fracture are closed fractures and open fractures. A closed fracture is the most common type and occurs when there is a break in a bone but no break in the skin over the fracture site. An open fracture involves a break in the bone along with a penetration of the overlying skin surface. Open fractures are more serious due to the risk of blood loss and contamination leading to infection.

The signs and symptoms of a fracture include pain and tenderness, deformity, swelling and discoloration, loss of function of the body part, and numbness or tingling. The patient usually guards the injured part and may relay to you that he or she heard the bone break or snap or felt a grating sensation. This grating sensation, known ascrepitus, is caused by the bone fragments rubbing against each other.

Fractures can also be classified according to the nature of the break: impacted, greenstick, transverse, oblique, comminuted, and spiral. Illustrates and describes these types of fracture.