SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 My dd hit her arm on something and has a swollen knot on a couple inches above her wrist where the bone in her arm is. I asked her to move her wrist and she can, but says it hurts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Have her hold her arm out and look to see if it's still straight. Broken bones still move, and in even more directions! You can also try to trace the bones with your fingers to feel for a break, listen for crackling noises. Hope all is well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 Nevermind. Going to have it x-rayed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 OH, you must have been posting the same time I was. Thanks, I'll check that real quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Broken bones often don't move if they are clean fractures. Basically it is like a crack and they also can't be seen on an xray for a few days, particularly with children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 OH, you must have been posting the same time I was. Thanks, I'll check that real quick. I knew my son had broken his arm when he couldn't/wouldn't grab M&Ms with that hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 I don't hear anything crackling or see anything moving that shouldn't be. The knot on her arm is turning black and blue. Maybe she just bruised it real good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I fractured my arm in gym class in high school. I ended up in a cast for 3 weeks. There was no swelling, no knots, no bruising, but after a couple of hours the arm just was hurting. I was crying with the pain, although I don't recall seeing anything externally that would indicate a problem. Doesn't hurt to call the pediatrician nurse line (if you have one) and see if they recommend icing the arm for a while or if they recommend getting it x-rayed. If it hurts a lot, get the x-ray now regardless. (And it's sure better to hang out in the ER now rather than at 2am!) Hope it goes well for you and that your daughter feels better soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I don't hear anything crackling or see anything moving that shouldn't be. The knot on her arm is turning black and blue. Maybe she just bruised it real good? I had a bruise on my leg once that swelled up so that it stuck out a few inches above the surrounding skin. It looked horrific. I did get it xrayed and nothing was broken. This happened 7 years ago and I still have what looks like a faded bruise in that spot. So my point is that bruises can look like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 She's using her hand, so I'm hoping that's all it is. I'm going to watch it for a while and see what it does. I hate to take her to the emergency room if it's not broken, but now I'm going to worry to death for the next few hours till I know it's not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 As the embarrassed -- (embarrassed to confess) -- veteran of numerous broken bones, and mother of children boasting their own collection of same, I can reassure you that waiting until tomorrow to visit a doc-in-a-box (unless one still is open right now, at whatever o'clock it is in your time zone) will not be a horrible mistake. An X-ray has better results after swelling recedes somewhat. (So quoth the doctor offices.) The injury you describe should be examined by a doctor, nonetheless. This could represent more than one situation. Forgive the nosy question -- but you did apply ice and a cold compress immediately, right ? Hugs to your dd ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perry Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 She's using her hand, so I'm hoping that's all it is. I'm going to watch it for a while and see what it does. I hate to take her to the emergency room if it's not broken, but now I'm going to worry to death for the next few hours till I know it's not. I'd give it a day or two. Hitting your arm on something doesn't usually result in a fracture (although it's possible-just not likely). Even if it's broken, that mechanism of injury doesn't usually result in complicated fractures. Many simple fractures don't even show up on an x-ray right away. If it's just a bruise, she'll be using it again soon. No harm would be done by waiting a couple days, even if it's broken. Simple fractures are often just immobilized for a day or two with a splint before casting. If you're really concerned get a splint from the store and have her wear it for a day or two, and if it still hurts, see the doctor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 As the embarrassed -- (embarrassed to confess) -- veteran of numerous broken bones, and mother of children boasting their own collection of same, I can reassure you that waiting until tomorrow to visit a doc-in-a-box (unless one still is open right now, at whatever o'clock it is in your time zone) will not be a horrible mistake. An X-ray has better results after swelling recedes somewhat. (So quoth the doctor offices.) The injury you describe should be examined by a doctor, nonetheless. This could represent more than one situation. Forgive the nosy question -- but you did apply ice and a cold compress immediately, right ? Hugs to your dd ! Yes, we got a package of frozen veggies and put on it right away. She's back to playing now, but is still favoring that arm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Well, I'm obviously not too swift at detecting them, because my daughter broke her arm and it didn't even occur to me until the next day that it might be broken. No real swelling, and she didn't complain much of pain. It was when I noticed she wasn't using it the next morning that the light went on. For breaks like that, I think an x-ray is the only way to tell for sure. Her break three years ago, however, was obvious.:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 I had a bruise on my leg once that swelled up so that it stuck out a few inches above the surrounding skin. It looked horrific. I did get it xrayed and nothing was broken. This happened 7 years ago and I still have what looks like a faded bruise in that spot. So my point is that bruises can look like that. Once it gets really bad, you have to worry that a vessel might've ruptured. IOW, you're bleeding, but it stays under the skin and looks like a huge bruise. In your case, the bleeding stopped before there was any risk, but that is the concern with BAD bruises, is that there's bleeding you can't see. OP - I second the ice. And a trip to the doc on Mon., just to check the severity of damage, she must've hit it HARD. If you have a nurse on call at your doctor's office, you might want to call and ask if you could give your daughter Tylenol to reduce the swelling and pain :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.... Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 I broke my arm about 10 years ago at work. It looked ok (and I didn't have health insurance), so I went home. The pain was so bad that I fainted. I was dizzy and nauseated. My sister forced me to go to the emergency room. My arm "looked" ok. I think pain could be a good indicator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
praisefor3 Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 Just a note to not wait TOO long. Last year my son's hand got hurt at VBS. The knuckles were swollen and hid the displacement. He could use it fine but did say it hurt some. Didn't stop him from doing anything he liked to do. One week later when it wasn't healing I took him to the ortho. He showed me the x-rays and you can't imagine how upset I was. His two right knuckles were totally smashed to pieces. Had I brought him in within a day or two they would have done surgery. Unfortunately at that point the healing had begun and it involved a growth plate. They thought they would do more damage at that point then good. We spent several months going back to have it x-rayed to determine if they would have to finally do surgery, re-break the knuckles and try to repair. They have decided not to do that but his two knuckles are lower than the others and those fingers are shorter than they were. Needless to say, my natural laid back approach has now turned into being a member of the "when in doubt check it out" club. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TraceyS/FL Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 She's using her hand, so I'm hoping that's all it is. I'm going to watch it for a while and see what it does. I hate to take her to the emergency room if it's not broken, but now I'm going to worry to death for the next few hours till I know it's not. My brother continued to use his arm/hand with TWO different breaks. That was so NOT an indicator with him at all.... My only parental dealing with a broken arm was very much obvious that it was broken when you looked at it - forearms don't have dips in them.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainbows Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 my one DS broke his upper arm bone in half, but it wasn't displaced so the only indicator was swelling and pain another DS broke his wrist....only minor swellng and pain DD just recently hit her hand (pinkie finger) on the TV stand and managed to chip a piece of bone off --right on the growth plate. Just had very little swelling and a bruise All 3 ended up in casts for 6-7 weeks. At our house, any suspected broken bones get taken to the ER since my kids seem to have a knack for breaking things lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 My middle dd fractured her arm when she was 10yo. She was still using it. It mostly didn't hurt. It never bruised or swelled up. After two weeks though, she was still occasionally feeling pain when she twisted her wrist. It was a greenstick fracture. She was casted for three weeks. My oldest has had breaks and fractures. She broke 5 bones in her foot when she was almost 5yo. She only fell about 15 inches, but she fell on top of a rock. It hurt right then, but then she crawled off to her room. She was still crawling rather than walking later on. I had no idea that anything was broken. I thought she was fine. She would walk on her foot, but she wasn't in any pain. There was no swelling or bruising. Then she woke up around 2am and kept me up the rest of the night with her pain. I took her to the emergency room in the morning (it was a Sunday). The doctor did an x-ray and told me it wasn't broken. He said she'd probably crawl for a few more days, but then she'd be fine. When she was still crawling on Wednesday, I called my doctor and she referred me to an orthopedist. They had me get the x-ray from the hospital and bring it with me. When they put it up on the light table, even I could see the breaks. I don't know how the doctor could have possible missed seeing them. The orthopedist was very concerned because the breaks were very close to the growth plate, but she ended up healing just fine. She was casted for 6 weeks. When my oldest fell down the stairs 10 minutes after the movers left from moving into our first house with stairs, I wasn't about to go to the emergency room. I already knew what would happen there. I waited until the next day. She had a compression fracture and was put in a splint for 5-6 weeks. That was very nice because she could take it off for baths. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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