Sprain or Broken Bone? How to Tell the Difference
You roll your ankle stepping off a curb, or you catch yourself with your hand during a fall. It hurts and it’s starting to swell. Is it a sprain, or is something broken?
Sprains and fractures can look and feel a lot alike. Knowing the signs helps you decide whether to rest at home or get it checked with an X-ray.
What Is a Sprain?
A sprain is an injury to a ligament, the tough band of tissue that connects one bone to another at a joint. Sprains happen when a joint twists or bends farther than it should. Ankles, wrists, and knees are the most common spots.
Common signs of a sprain:
- Pain around the joint, especially when you move it
- Swelling and bruising
- Stiffness or trouble moving the joint
- A pop or tearing feeling at the moment of injury
What Is a Fracture?
A fracture is a break or crack in a bone. Some fractures are obvious. Others, like small cracks in the wrist or foot, can feel a lot like a bad sprain.
Signs that point to a fracture:
- The area looks bent, crooked, or out of place
- You can’t put any weight on it, or you can’t use it at all
- Pain is sharp and focused on one spot on the bone
- You heard or felt a snap or crack
- Numbness, tingling, or a cold, pale limb below the injury
- Swelling and bruising that are severe or keep getting worse
Why an X-Ray Matters
The only way to know for sure whether a bone is broken is an X-ray. Treating a fracture like a sprain can lead to slow healing, ongoing pain, or a bone that heals out of place.
At Miracle Touch Urgent Care, we have on-site X-rays. We can check your injury, take images, and tell you what’s going on in the same visit.
First Aid: The RICE Method
While you decide on next steps, use RICE to ease pain and swelling:
- Rest. Stop using the injured area.
- Ice. Apply a cold pack wrapped in a thin towel for 15 to 20 minutes at a time, every few hours.
- Compression. Wrap the area snugly with an elastic bandage, but not so tight it causes numbness.
- Elevation. Keep the injured area raised above the level of your heart when you can.
Don’t try to straighten a limb that looks bent or out of place.
When to Get It Checked
Visit urgent care if:
- You can’t bear weight or use the injured area
- Pain and swelling don’t start improving after a day or two of home care
- You think a bone might be broken
- The injury happened to a child or an older adult, whose bones are more vulnerable
Go to the ER or call 911 if a bone is pushing through the skin, the limb is badly deformed, the area below the injury is cold, blue, or numb, or the injury came from a serious accident.
Get an X-Ray at Miracle Touch Urgent Care in Hollywood
Don’t guess about a painful injury. Our team can examine it, take an X-ray on-site, and get you started on the right treatment.
Call us at (323) 673-7200 or walk in today.
This article is for general information and isn’t a substitute for medical advice. In an emergency, call 911.