-it happen 2 weeks ago today.
-the worst of the injury was to the #3 metacarpo-phalangeal joint and the #4 proximal interphalangeal joint (severe swelling and pain).
I when to A&E(Emergency) the day after it happen and got xray but they could see any fracture.
They didn't say to imobilise the joints or anything.
Alot of the swelling has now gone down around the #3 MP joint but the #4 PIP joint is more swollen around the lateral regions and the entire #4 digit looks deformed. It's also slightly stiff.
Could there be a fracture at the #3 PIP that wasn't noticed on the xray?
Should i imobilise the joint? any help appreciated...
2007-09-20 06:02:39 · 2 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Injuries
correction: could there be a fracture at the #4 PIP?
2007-09-20 06:03:55 · update #1
Unless the x-ray technician or the doctor screwed up (which is possible but not likely) then there is no fracture.
Ligament damage (sprains) can sometimes swell as much as a broken bone and ligaments are not all that fast to heal.
As far as immobilization, even doctors argue about that. There are two schools of thought here: immobilize so that you don't do any further damage and let the broken parts heal, and the movement school which favors keeping the joints moving to maintain range of motion and increase blood flow.
The way that I would go about choosing would be based on what I needed to do with my hands. I broke my little finger on my right hand once playing rugby and I just taped to the next finger and carried on (though its deformed now - oh well, I can still play piano)
Its good to get as many opinions as possible and in the end you have to decide for yourself but I would trust health professionals more than I would us Yahoos.
2007-09-20 06:05:49 · answer #1 · answered by megalomaniac 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Apparently, you're the anatomy professor here. Why don't you tell us.
2007-09-20 13:07:00 · answer #2 · answered by Octal040 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋