Nonsurgical Treatment for Nonhealing Fractures (2024)

FAQs

Nonsurgical Treatment for Nonhealing Fractures? ›

Electronic and Ultrasonic Bone Stimulation

If your fracture is mild and your bones did not move far out of place (if it's non-displaced), you might only need a splint or cast. Splinting usually lasts for three to five weeks. If you need a cast, it will likely be for longer, typically six to eight weeks.

Most nonunions require surgery. Surgical treatment of nonunion is usually focused on three goals: Establishing a healthy vascular area of bone and soft tissue around the fracture site. This is accomplished by removal of any poorly dead bone or poorly vascularized tissue or scar from the fracture site.

Nonsurgical Treatment

Some nonunions can be treated nonsurgically. One form of nonsurgical treatment is to immobilize the nonunion with a splint, cast, or brace for a period of time.

Traction is another non-surgical method for treating fractures. It involves realigning a broken bone through the use of weights, pulleys, and ropes. Traction pulls the bone or body part back into position, temporarily relieving pain and correcting the healing process.

Nondisplaced fractures are often closed and do not move out of alignment. They are sometimes referred to as incomplete fractures because the bone cracks but does not break all the way through.

Typically a fracture can heal within 6-8 weeks. There are 3 phases of healing time with a fracture: The inflammatory phase begins when the injury occurs and lasts for a week or two. During the inflammatory phase, cytokines, growth factors, and prostaglandins are released and heal the broken bone.

Nonunions usually lead to a continuation of the pain at the site of a break, even after the initial pain of the fracture has passed. The pain from a nonunion may last months or even years if treatment is not sought.

Nonunion in clinical practice is most commonly associated with long bone fractures of the forearm, humerus, tibia, clavicle and femur. The majority of nonunions can be effectively managed with conventional surgical techniques.

Symptoms of a fracture that is not healing normally include tenderness, swelling, and an aching pain that may be felt deep within the affected bone. Often, the bone isn't strong enough to bear weight, and you may not be able to use the affected body part until the bone heals.

How common is bone nonunion? ›

Despite the quality of care received at initial fracture treatment, as many as 20% of fractures may result in a malunion or nonunion. The causes of these healing defects are often difficult to identify and complex to treat, requiring specialized training and resources to correct.

Vitamin D status should be determined routinely in case of delayed or non-union. Supplementation is required in case of a vitamin D deficiency.

About Infected Nonunions

As the name implies, the fracture site has refused to heal and the bone and surrounding soft tissues are infected. The persistent motion at the fracture site is commonly associated with severe pain and many patients suffer with purulent drainage from the infected bone.

How are fractures treated without surgery? Whether surgery is needed or not, every fracture heals by immobilizing the bone and giving it time to reconnect and strengthen. This can be done with a boot, a splint, a cast, or a brace.

Although minor fractures can heal on their own, more serious fractures will require surgery. If you've experienced a fracture in your foot and/or ankle, you'll need to be treated by an orthopaedic surgeon who has knowledge of the intricate workings of the bones, tendons, ligaments and muscles of the foot and ankle.

Treatment for an Avulsion Fracture: Surgery is not necessary for most avulsion fractures; unless the detached bone fragment ends up at a significant distance from the bone. The medical provider will instruct you to rest and ice the injury and will recommend specific range of motion exercises.

Gangrene and life-threatening complications

Furthermore, an untreated fracture can lead to life-threatening complications if the bone has pierced the skin, known as an open fracture. This is because the injury will damage the surrounding tissue and blood vessels.

If untreated, the pain experienced from a fracture will likely worsen as time goes on. The main risk of an untreated fracture, however, is improper healing. This can result in visible deformities, misalignment, limited movement, and infection.

A broken foot can take four to six weeks to fully heal. But in some cases, healing time can take up to 10 to 12 weeks.

However, because the display settings may present the image with the expected gray scale, contrast, and brightness, the radiograph may appear to be properly exposed. Even with properly positioned and technically excellent radiographs, some fractures are undetectable on radiographs because they are nondisplaced.