Broken Foot? - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Artsemis · 10-30-2003, 06:33 PM

Okay, my girlfriend works in a gym and today she dropped a 25 lb. weight on her foot (wearing sandals).

Her foot almost instantly started to bruise and she is barely able to walk on it. She was able to move her toes fairly easily but now it is begining to hurt when she does. She went to the emergency room and they gave her an X-Ray and some painkillers and basically just told her it isn't broken.

She said the x-ray showed some 'cracks' but the doctors insisted its not broken. This hospital has said the same thing about a friends ribs; he went somewhere else and they were really broken.

I was just wondering what someone else thinks. She's going to get it checked out somewhere else tomorrow but I was just looking for a bit of quick info.

Thanks!

PS. the painkiller is "Darvocet" or something like that.

Mael · 10-30-2003, 07:43 PM

i broke my thumb once, the ER guy said it wasn't broken, but when i went to an ortho, he declared it broken. the thing with your gf's foot, though, is that it may not be broken. the cracks she saw? were they cracks in the bone, or where they the cracks between the bones? the foot is made up about 9 or so bones before the toes. she may have just seen those boundries.

cliche · 10-31-2003, 04:41 AM

As we are always told "a fracture is a clinical diagnosis, not an X-ray one".
It's difficult to tell just from what you say whether it's broken or not. You can have cracks in a bone which don't go all the way through (all the more likely with a direct impact like a weight) so the bone is still in one piece. As the real, nasty pain in a fracture comes from bone ends rubbing against each other; your gf may have avoided that.

Basically, be sensible. Keep it elevated; try the painkillers you were given. If it's painful to move it may benefit from strapping or a cast, and keep it protected!

The painkillers you have (they go under a different name in the UK but I'm pretty sure they're the same thing) are a mixture of paracetamol and something called dextropropoxyphene (an opioid, like codeine). They work best if taken regularly (usually 2, 3x daily - but take your doctor's advice, not mine). If the pain's still bad, something extra can be added eg ibuprofen (assuming your gf is not asthmatic etc, ask your pharmacist if you buy some).

Hope that helps, and good luck to your gf!

Artsemis · 10-31-2003, 05:09 AM

Thanks for the info guys -- I appreciate it =)

10-30-2003, 06:33 PM	#1 (permalink)
Artsemis Insane Location: West Virginia	Broken Foot? Okay, my girlfriend works in a gym and today she dropped a 25 lb. weight on her foot (wearing sandals). Her foot almost instantly started to bruise and she is barely able to walk on it. She was able to move her toes fairly easily but now it is begining to hurt when she does. She went to the emergency room and they gave her an X-Ray and some painkillers and basically just told her it isn't broken. She said the x-ray showed some 'cracks' but the doctors insisted its not broken. This hospital has said the same thing about a friends ribs; he went somewhere else and they were really broken. I was just wondering what someone else thinks. She's going to get it checked out somewhere else tomorrow but I was just looking for a bit of quick info. Thanks! PS. the painkiller is "Darvocet" or something like that. __________________ - Artsemis ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ There are two keys to being the best: 1.) Never tell everything you know

10-31-2003, 04:41 AM	#3 (permalink)
cliche Rookie Location: Oxford, UK	As we are always told "a fracture is a clinical diagnosis, not an X-ray one". It's difficult to tell just from what you say whether it's broken or not. You can have cracks in a bone which don't go all the way through (all the more likely with a direct impact like a weight) so the bone is still in one piece. As the real, nasty pain in a fracture comes from bone ends rubbing against each other; your gf may have avoided that. Basically, be sensible. Keep it elevated; try the painkillers you were given. If it's painful to move it may benefit from strapping or a cast, and keep it protected! The painkillers you have (they go under a different name in the UK but I'm pretty sure they're the same thing) are a mixture of paracetamol and something called dextropropoxyphene (an opioid, like codeine). They work best if taken regularly (usually 2, 3x daily - but take your doctor's advice, not mine). If the pain's still bad, something extra can be added eg ibuprofen (assuming your gf is not asthmatic etc, ask your pharmacist if you buy some). Hope that helps, and good luck to your gf! __________________ I can't understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I'm frightened of the old ones. -- John Cage (1912 - 1992)

10-31-2003, 05:09 AM	#4 (permalink)
Artsemis Insane Location: West Virginia	Thanks for the info guys -- I appreciate it =) __________________ - Artsemis ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ There are two keys to being the best: 1.) Never tell everything you know

10-30-2003, 07:43 PM	#2 (permalink)
Mael Banned Location: The Hell I Created.	i broke my thumb once, the ER guy said it wasn't broken, but when i went to an ortho, he declared it broken. the thing with your gf's foot, though, is that it may not be broken. the cracks she saw? were they cracks in the bone, or where they the cracks between the bones? the foot is made up about 9 or so bones before the toes. she may have just seen those boundries.