What causes a slip and fall on ice wrist fracture? A broken wrist scaphoid fracture is almost always caused by a fall on the outstretched hand. We commonly try to break a fall by putting our hands out for protection. Landing on an outstretched hand makes hand and wrist injuries, including a fracture of the scaphoid bone, fairly common.
When a scaphoid fracture is recognized on the first X-ray, treatment begins immediately. But patients often assume that the injury is just a sprain, and they wait for it to heal on its own. In some cases, the wrist gets better. In many cases the bone fails to heal. The scaphoid fracture then develops into what surgeons call a nonunion. A nonunion can occur in two ways. In a simple nonunion, the two pieces of bone fail to heal together. The second type of nonunion is much more serious. The lower half of the fractured bone loses its blood supply and actually dies. This condition is called avascular necrosis. The scaphoid bone is at risk for avascular necrosis. Only one small artery enters the bone, at the end that is closest to the thumb. If the fracture tears the artery, the blood supply is lost. Avascular necrosis becomes easy to see on X-rays several months after the injury.
What are the symptoms of a scaphoid wrist fracture from a slip and fall on ice? The symptoms of a fresh fracture of the scaphoid bone usually include pain in the wrist and tenderness in the area just below the thumb. You may also see swelling around the wrist. The swelling occurs because blood from the fractured bone fills the wrist joint. Thin people will see a bulging of the joint capsule. The joint capsule is the watertight sac that encloses the joint. Symptoms of a nonunion of the scaphoid bone are more subtle. You may have pain when you use your wrist. However, the pain may be very minimal. It is fairly common for doctors to see a nonunion of the scaphoid bone on X-rays, but the patient can’t remember an injury. These people probably suffered a wrist injury years ago that they thought was a simple sprain. Still, the most common symptom of a nonunion is a gradual increase in pain. Over several years the nonunion can lead to Degenerative arthritis in the wrist joint.
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, McCormick Law Office attorneys are experienced in getting the best results in slip and fall on ice wrist fracture cases. Our attorneys use x-rays of the fracture if the medical records give an honest and trustworthy depiction of the fracture.
