a compound fracture breaks the skin, the bone is dislodged enough to poke thru, so you don't have a compound fracture.
as for a hairline fracture, it takes an experienced eye to spot one on any xray. Xrays are rather limited diagnostic tools, they are no where near as definitive as say an MRI or even a CT. Just because you could not see it, doesn't mean it isn't there.
2007-07-18 09:59:43
·
answer #1
·
answered by essentiallysolo 7
·
3⤊
0⤋
I am no expert it is only what i have read, seen on the telly and learn on the wards working with the nurses.
The doc is and expert, he knows what he is looking for.
I have seen xrays and the littlest crack is called a hairline fracture as you may know, this literally is like a hairline on the xray. Very hard to see but with all the information you give about your symptoms the way you look and blood test will tell if ter eis a break or a fracture.
If we break a bone we realease particles of bone into our blood system that should not be there. The worse the break the more stuff in your system, the minor the break the less stuff floating around.The body does not like this and there for makes you feel sick, so the docs can see this in blood test.
All these things together bring it to the point that there is a break or a fracture, so they look on the xray.
You can see breaks but hairlines are difficult to see but they know what they are looking for, if they are unsure they will consult a specialist. Sometimes all the symptoms point to a break or a hairline and they cant see so they play on the safe side, because if they did nothing then the strain would cause that hairline to fracture and that would be worse.
I dont know if this helps, as i said i am no expert and itis all learn of my own back, no training.
I might be wrong but no doubt people will correct me and that is fine, i would be happy about it.
The last thing i want to do is give out false information, but to my knowledge this is correct.
2007-07-18 20:23:50
·
answer #2
·
answered by Anonymous
·
0⤊
0⤋
A compound fracture can't be missed as that means the bone is sticking through the skin. Hence compound or open.
If it's small imagine if you colour in a piece of plastic film with a felt pen and then let it dry. Then take your finger nail and scrape off some of the pen. Some parts will scrape off thicker than others. Now relate the filled in area with the pen to the bone. Then where you scraped across it a fracture. Hold it up to the light and what you will see is the impression of a fracture. Look up hair line fracture. It's called hair line because that's what it looks like, a hair across the normal pattern of the bone.
2007-07-19 03:20:05
·
answer #3
·
answered by russell B 4
·
0⤊
0⤋
Sounds like to me you have a hairline fracture its a very common fracture in all ages,this is a slight crack in the bone and can be treated with a plaster cast up to 8 wks,a compound fracture is where the bone breaks the skin and the fracture is normally very displaced and requires surgery plates and screws to hold the fracture together,then a plaster cast up to 12-16wks.
2007-07-19 02:41:53
·
answer #4
·
answered by Sexy Red 4
·
1⤊
0⤋
well for starters by saying it is a compound fracture means there is an associated wound i.e. bone usually broken the skin and it doesn't sound like you have done that. Fractures can appear as a fine (sometimes darkened) line to the obviously smashed and obliterated. Even fine cracks are usually painful, with loss of function to some degree.
2007-07-18 10:12:35
·
answer #5
·
answered by Fred S 5
·
1⤊
0⤋
If its a compound fracture, you should look for a very small line-it will look like there's a piece of hair on the x-ray. Sometimes if the fracture is small enough, its nearly impossible to see without a trained eye, it depends on how severely you fractured your fibula.
2007-07-18 10:00:24
·
answer #6
·
answered by Anonymous
·
1⤊
1⤋
In A&E it is not unusual for the docs to miss a fracture. Every Xray is checked by a specialist radiographer who has YEARS of experience in looking at Xrays and they often spot things that are not blatantly obvious.
2007-07-19 02:10:08
·
answer #7
·
answered by Anonymous
·
0⤊
0⤋
Most fractures just look like a piece of hair stretched across the bone,compound fractures are often very noticable on x-ray because of obviose deformaty they can sometimes break through the skin
2007-07-18 09:59:54
·
answer #8
·
answered by dave a 2
·
0⤊
1⤋
You would certainly see a compound fracture. Even without an x-ray. It would be that bone sticking through the skin!
2007-07-18 10:01:52
·
answer #9
·
answered by Anonymous
·
2⤊
0⤋
You'd know if you had a compound fracture, you'd see your bone breaking out of your skin. Hairline fractures are more difficult to see, I have one on my ankle at the mo, it had to be checked several times as they are not easy to spot.
2007-07-18 10:14:51
·
answer #10
·
answered by HLW 3
·
0⤊
0⤋