This article will focus on first aid for rib fractures , classification of injuries, symptoms and treatment. In addition, we will focus on the differences between a bruise and a fracture, so that a person inexperienced in medicine can easily distinguish these injuries from each other and provide first aid to the injured.
Now we give some statistical information. To begin with, rib fractures result from physical effects on the human chest. According to statistics, about 70 percent of people turn to medical institutions with rib injuries. In addition, a fracture is detected in 16 percent.
Often such injuries are 4, 5, 6 and 7th ribs. This is easily explained by the fact that the lower ones have protection in the form of a muscle corset. In addition, the listed ribs do not have such flexibility as the rest.
Classification
Now we turn to the classification of rib injuries. It is important to note that here it is possible to present a classification according to various criteria. You will learn more about it from the table below.
Sign | Kinds | Explanation |
Skin damage | In this case, open and closed fractures are distinguished. | Fragments violate the integrity of the skin with an open fracture. With a closed fracture, bone fragments do not damage the skin and are located in the thickness of soft tissues |
The degree of bone damage | Distinguish: complete fracture, subperiosteal and fissure in the rib | With a complete fracture, the bone is damaged throughout its thickness, with a subperiosteal bone is damaged, with a fracture there is no fracture, only bone tissue is damaged |
Number of faults | Allocate single and multiple | With a single fracture, only one rib is damaged, with a multiple - several |
Location | Unilateral and bilateral | One-sided fracture - damage to the ribs on only one side, bilateral - on both |
Location of bone fragments | No offset and offset | It is important to clarify the following: during the final fracture (that is, when one rib is damaged in two places), fragments form. They can remain in the same place (fracture without displacement) or move (fracture with displacement) |
How to distinguish a bruise from a fracture
In this section, we will teach you to distinguish bruised ribs from their fracture. In life, different things can happen: they stumble, fall, the boys at school often fight, without thinking about the consequences, and so on. How to distinguish injuries of the ribs? It is important to note that there are several significant differences between a bruised rib and its fracture. To such we can include the following:
- the fracture is characterized by acute pain, this can be explained by damage to the bone tissue (it is important to note that the pain syndrome intensifies when trying to move or cough);
- if the rib breaks, then a bruise appears, you can feel the friction of the bones against each other;
- an open fracture is very easy to distinguish from a bruise, since the bone damages the skin of a person;
- if it’s not a fracture, but just a bruise, then only soft tissue is damaged, while you can feel aching pain, notice a small hematoma and swelling (special attention should be paid to chest deformation, such a bruise will not be detected).
The victim must always seek help from any nearby medical institution, even if he correctly diagnosed the condition.
Symptoms
This section of the article will focus on signs of rib fracture. How to diagnose your condition yourself? This will help the symptoms. To begin with, we highlight the signs of a fracture without damaging the skin (that is, closed) and internal organs:
- dull severe pain (it intensifies when you try to move, cough, take a deep breath);
- posture (in case of fracture of the ribs, a person tries to take a pose that will reduce the movement of the chest; these include: tilting towards the broken rib or grasping the chest with hands);
- shallow breathing (again, this is due to the fact that during the deep breath there is a movement of the chest, resulting in increased pain; to minimize it, a person tries to breathe superficially);
- hematoma (a large hematoma forms over the damaged rib);
- another sign of a rib fracture is chest deformity (this symptom is pronounced in thin people, especially with multiple fractures).
Now we look at the signs of an open fracture or with damage to internal organs:
- damaged skin (the bone is outside);
- rapid pulse;
- pale skin;
- if the lung is damaged , shortness of breath appears, bloody discharge from the respiratory tract;
- damage to the aorta leads to the death of the victim at the scene, as there is a profuse hemorrhage (such cases are extremely rare);
- heart damage in 70 percent of cases leads to death in the first minutes, hours and days; even if a person has survived after an injury, his life will be complicated by a number of diseases, such as chronic coronary insufficiency, dystrophic cardiosclerosis;
- liver damage leads to death, as a rule, in these cases, a person dies two hours after an injury.
Stages of healing
The healing of a fracture or crack in the rib is a lengthy process that requires close monitoring by a specialist. There are three stages of healing. They are presented in the table below.
Stage | Explanation |
First | This stage is also called connective corn. What is the reason for this? At the fracture site, blood and cells accumulate that produce connective tissue. Such cells are called fibroplasts, and they create the very connective callus. |
Second | At this stage, osteoid is formed from the connective callus. This is due to the deposition of inorganic substances and mineral salts in the connective corn |
Third | Fusion and hardening of bone. To increase the strength of osteoid corns, hydroxyapatites are deposited. It should be noted that hardening does not occur instantly. The corn remains loose for some time and is larger in diameter than the rib itself. |
First aid for rib fractures
If a person injured a rib in front of your eyes, then you need to urgently call an ambulance, while you wait for it, try to make the most of the benefit for the patient:
- First, make sure that you are dealing with a fracture (how to do this was described above).
- Give the victim an anesthetic.
- Using improvised means (bandages, towels, cloth), apply a tight bandage to the patient's chest. In order for this to cause less discomfort, the bandage should be applied on the exhale.
- Next, you need to attach something cold to the injury site.
- When providing first aid for fractures of the ribs, it is necessary to give the victim a semi-sitting position. Please note that the items should be completed in the exact sequence. The back of the patient should have a rigid support.
This is all that you can do for the patient at a given time.
Diagnostics
A number of procedures are performed to diagnose a fracture in a medical institution:
Next, you need to find out the degree of damage, for this you must do:
- X-ray (where you can take a picture, the doctor will tell you, as a rule, in the same institution);
- CT
- ultrasound examination of the chest.
Treatment
Treatment is carried out using plaster or elastic dressings, which fixes the position of the patient, and pain medications. For minor injuries, non-narcotic pain medications are used, in more severe cases - narcotic.
Features of bed rest
How to sleep with broken ribs? This question excites many patients. It all depends on where the fracture occurred. If the ribs of the front wall are damaged, then you need to sleep on your back, always on a hard surface. If the back side is damaged, you need to sleep and lie on the opposite side.
First aid for fractures of the rib is necessary for the victim while waiting for an ambulance. It is important to be able to competently render it. How to do this, you learned from this article.