Fractures
Fractures
- Disruption or break in continuity of structure of bone
- Majority of fractures from traumatic injuries
- Some fractures secondary to disease process
Classifications
- Classification according to external environment
- Open fracture
- The skin is broken and bone exposed, causing soft tissue injury
- Closed fracture
- Fractures can be classified as
- Complete
- if the break goes completely through the bone
- Incomplete
- Fracture occurs partly across a bone shaft but the bone is still intact.
- An incomplete fracture is often the result of bending or crushing forces applied to a bone.
- Based on direction of fracture line
- Linear
- Oblique
- The line of the fracture extends across and down the bone
- Transverse
- The line of the fracture extends across the bone shaft at a right angle to the longitudinal axis
- Longitudinal
- Spiral
- The line of the fracture extends in a spiral direction along the bone shaft.
- Displaced or nondisplaced
- Displaced: two ends separated from one another
- Often comminuted or oblique
- Nondisplaced: periosteum is intact and bone is aligned.
- Usually transverse, spiral , or greenstick