Question - Wrist Injury Possible Fracture?

by Jane
( Pinson, AL)

I fell from standing in a kitchen chair last Thursday night and landed with all my weight(250 lbs) on my left wrist.

I went to the E.R. on Friday and after an X-ray and 5 minutes the doctor said it was just a stain and stabilized it and sent me home.

I am a RN and I am still in severe pain and feel I might have a scaphoid fracture. Should I see another doctor or should there still be this much pain after 4 days.

I can not turn my hand or grip at all and 90% of the pain is on the thumb side. The swelling is over most of the hand but the bruising is under my thumb and underside of the wrist.

I have kept it elevated and stabilized since the incident. Can a fracture be mistaken for a sprain in this area?

Please help me.

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Question - Wrist Injury Possible Fracture?

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Apr 06, 2008
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Definitely follow up...
by: Bart - SII

Wrist fractures can often be mis-diagnosed, especially in the E.R. where the primary concern is for life threatening injuries. The scaphoid (navicular) bone is triangular shaped and a small fracture can be missed on X-rays, especially if not looked at by an orthopedist.

A wrist sprain will be painful, but since you seem to have a lot of swelling and quite a bit of pain, I would highly recommend following up with your PCP or with an orthopedist. They should take additional X-rays or may use the ones from the E.R. An MRI or CT scan may also be helpful to better see the scaphoid.

A second opinion from an orthopedist is a good idea because of the tendency of the scaphoid to go non-union. In the meantime keep it stabilized and elevated, with lots of ice. It could just be a strain, but better to be safe than sorry.

Hope this helps - comment back with other questions.