How to do rehabilitation training after humeral fracture surgery

Fractures are very common in life, and there are many causes and locations of fractures. When a fracture occurs, timely treatment is necessary to avoid physical disability. In terms of treatment, surgery and medication are both good options. However, after the operation, you still need some time to rest and do some rehabilitation training. So let’s find out how to do rehabilitation training after humeral fracture surgery?

It takes several months for joint function to improve after a fracture. As long as you are careful and persistent, you will make progress every day. Don't be too anxious. After a period of exercise, you will feel the progress when you look back. Because the basic cause of elbow stiffness is the adhesion between bones and soft tissues, relying on exercise to loosen and absorb these adhesions is an invisible thing. It is more like the process of loosening a rubber band. It will always bounce back at the beginning, but the force of the rebound will become smaller and smaller.

Normally, a range of motion of 30-40 degrees can be achieved within 8 weeks, and the ankle will generally return to near normal. Even if this degree is reached within 3 months, satisfactory recovery can be achieved through persistent exercise. But special attention should be paid to fracture healing. The first three months are the critical period for fracture healing. Excessive exercise will destroy the basis of fracture healing. You should communicate fully with your attending physician and exercise under the doctor's guidance. Do not use violence and take care to protect the fracture site.

The exercise method should start with joint flexibility, such as rotation and stretching, and then gradually increase weight-bearing exercises. You can use your other hand to help with a slightly larger range of flexion and extension (as long as it does not cause pain). While exercising, you can also use magnetic therapy and hot compress (use safflower and Panax notoginseng boiled water for fumigation and hot compress, or use angelica, salvia miltiorrhiza, red dates, and bone-healing herb to cook porridge and drink it).

Home care tips:

1. Before removing the stitches, please clean your body with a sponge bath.

2. The bathroom should be carpeted or tiled with non-slip tiles, and shoes with deeper soles should be worn to prevent slipping.

3. After returning home, you should continue to use assistive devices (crutches or walkers) and gradually increase your activity level.

4. Please follow the doctor's instructions, take medicine on time, and return to the hospital for regular checkups.

5. You can ask your doctor when you can put your injured foot on the ground (bear weight). Once the doctor tells you that you can bear weight, please do so. This can promote bone recovery, but do not exceed the load to avoid accidents.

Regarding the rehabilitation training after humeral fracture surgery introduced above, the above methods can be used after or before surgery to help with rehabilitation. You need to persist for a long time with the help of your family, otherwise the effect will not be obvious. Similarly, we should keep a happy mood and eat a healthy diet in our daily life.