What to do if a toe is broken

Fractures are not unfamiliar to many people. Fractures may occur in many parts of the body, but toe fractures are relatively rare. Toes can also be fractured. When a toe is fractured, emergency measures must be taken to avoid aggravating the fracture. Fractures must be treated based on symptoms. So what should people do when they break their toes?

1. Western medicine

The typical manifestations of fracture patients are local deformation after injury, abnormal movement of limbs, and bone friction sound when moving limbs. In addition, there is severe pain in the wound, local swelling and congestion, and movement disorders after injury. Move the patient as little as possible after an injury. If the patient must be moved, the movements must be cautious, gentle, and steady, with the principle of not increasing the patient's pain. The ultimate goal of treating a fracture is to restore the injured limb to the greatest possible size. Restore its function to the maximum extent possible. therefore. In the treatment of fractures, the three basic principles of reduction, fixation and functional exercise are very important.

2. Reset:

It is to restore the displaced fracture ends to their normal or close to normal position after fracture, so as to restore the supporting function of the bones. The methods of reduction include closed reduction, surgical reduction, and external fixator reduction.

3. Fixed

After the fracture is reduced, because it is unstable and prone to re-displacement, different methods should be used to fix it in a satisfactory position so that it can heal gradually. Commonly used fixation methods include: small splints, plaster bandages, external fixation brackets, traction and braking fixation, etc., which are called external fixation. If the surgery is performed to insert steel plates, steel needles, intramedullary nails, screws, etc., it is called internal fixation.

4. Functional exercise

By contracting the muscles of the injured limb, blood circulation in the tissues surrounding the fracture is increased, fracture healing is promoted, and muscle atrophy is prevented. By actively or passively moving the unfixed joints, joint adhesion and joint capsule contracture are prevented, so that the function of the injured limb can be restored to its normal state before the fracture as soon as possible.