Common Types of Bone Fracture | Decatur, GA | Atlanta Bone and Joint Specialists

Bones make up your skeleton. They are the foundational structures of the body. Bones are where muscles, tendons, and tissue attach to make up your body structure so that you can grasp, lift, jump, run, kneel and sit. Bones are also the storage structures for calcium and the producers of blood cells via the bone marrow, among other functions.
While bones are solid, they may fail to withstand if considerable pressure is exerted on them, such as from a fall or an accident. The damage caused is called a fracture, crack, or break. The extent of the fracture is different from one person to another, so there are different types of fractures.

Common Types of Broken Bone Fractures
A fracture is given a name based on its location, the alignment of the bones, and whether it affects nerve and blood function. It also matters whether the skin has broken out at the fracture site or remained intact at the injury site.

Transverse fracture 
A transverse fracture forms when the bone breaks at a 90 degrees angle and then travels across the bone. The fracture forms when an individual suffers an enormous blow directly perpendicular to the bone. An orthopedic trauma surgeon must address a transverse fracture.

Greenstick fracture
Greenstick fractures are often found in children because their bones are yet to develop fully. Since the bones are not fully solid, the bone bends rather than breaks when dealt with a significant force. Sometimes, the outer layer of the bone may fracture while the inner parts remain intact.

Pathologic fracture
This is a fracture that forms when bones weaken so much from disease. The bones fracture easily, and the break is called a pathologic fracture. Most people who develop pathologic fractures have osteoporosis, which causes the bones to become weak or brittle, so they break easily.

Oblique fracture
An oblique fracture is a fracture with a curved break or one that forms at an angle to the bone. The fracture forms when a person receives a sharp blow at an angle.

Stress fracture
Stress fractures are common among athletes and form after incurring sports injuries. This is a hairline fracture in the bone that causes significant discomfort. It impedes athletic performance.

Comminuted fracture
This is a severe type of fracture in which the bone that happens when the bone fractures in three or more places. It most often occurs on small bones such as those on the feet and hands. They mainly occur after an accident or other serious event.

Compound fracture
A compound fracture, also called an open fracture, involves a break of the skin or an open wound around the breakage site. The wound is caused by the broken bones sticking through the skin due to the impact of the injury.

Compound fractures often happen in car accidents when the sudden impact fracture the bone and forces the bone fragments to stick out of the skin.

Spiral fracture
For this one, the fracture has the form of a winding staircase or corkscrew because the bone breaks diagonally across a bone that has more length than width. For the fracture to take this shape, the force that causes it must be great.

Spiral fractures are pretty severe and may result in serious complications. The reason is that when the bones break at an angle, they separate into two pieces with rough, uneven edges and do not align easily, making it difficult for the broken bones to come together.

Skull fractures
A skull fracture is an injury to the head by a strong force that causes the skull bone to break. If the break is mild, the problems formed are few, and the injury heals with time. A severe break causes severe brain damage, bleeding, seizures, infections, and cerebrospinal fluid leakage.

People develop head fractures when they fall and hit the ground, are hit with an object, have their head hit in a car accident, and other forms of trauma to the head.

Compression fractures
A compression fracture is a fracture that occurs when a section of the vertebra, the bone in your spine, collapses. This especially happens for short bones, often due to reduced bone strength due to osteoporosis. The compression fracture causes pain in the upper back and may lead to a shortened height. You may also develop a forward curvature on your spine, causing you to appear like you have a hump. The injury is common among the elderly, especially females. The treatment for the compression fracture does not require surgery, although the doctor may recommend vertebral augmentation surgery sometimes.

Hip fractures
A hip fracture is a break on the thighbone in your hip joint. A severe injury is caused by a fall or other kind of trauma that directly impacts the hip area, particularly if your bones have been weakened by disease or osteoporosis. Older people are more likely to develop hip fractures because many have poor vision, balance issues, and multiple medications that affect their coordination.
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Receive Care and Treatment From the Atlanta Bone and Joint Specialists
For superior fracture treatment, contact Atlanta Bone and Joint Specialists. We are a team of board-certified orthopedic surgeons whose commitment is to pursue patient improvement and satisfaction relentlessly. We aim to get you back to your happy, healthy, and productive life. We have had extensive experience working with patients on different orthopedic issues, and you can trust us to treat your fractures with absolute care. We guarantee that your satisfaction is the only outcome that matters. Visit us in any of our locations in Decatur, Loganville, and Snellville from Monday to Friday. You can also call us to make inquiries and to request an appointment.