Broken foot

Broken foot overview

Structurally, the foot has three main parts: the forefoot, the midfoot, and the hindfoot. The foot in total is made up from a total of 26 bones and 33 joints. Due to the complex range of motion and loads which the foot experiences, broken feet are fairly common, especially in outdoor activities. A broken foot is often placed in a plaster cast as a means of treatment. The purpose of the cast is to ensure that the bone in the broken foot is correctly aligned when it begins to heal again. In some circumstances where the broken foot is more serious, a surgical procedure may be required.

Types of break in a broken foot

Depending on the type of impact a bone in the foot can break in several different ways. A simple break is a break that does not pierce the skin. Symptoms include severe pain that becomes worse over time and with movement, swelling, bruising and an inability to bear weight. A simple break is the most common type of broken foot. An impacted fracture is often caused by falls. In this type of broken foot, one end of the bone is forced into the other. A spiral break is a break around the bone. Comminuted fractures, where a bone breaks into fragments, or compression fractures are the most common types of broken foot sustained in road traffic accidents due to the large forces involved.
We are experts in helping all of those who have sustained a broken foot. Please contact us to see how we can help you recover compensation and receive the correct levels of rehabilitation to make your recovery as quick as possible.

Broken foot recovery

A simple fracture takes on average 8 weeks to repair. As with all injures the timescales for a broken foot to heal depends on the exact nature of the break along with other factors such as your age. There are four main stages that a broken foot goes through to heal. Firstly a haematoma is formed by the blood vessels in the bone. Secondly, a cartilage callus forms on the site of the haematoma to act as a splint. Thirdly, a bonus callus replaces the cartilage. Finally the bony callus forms a permanent patch on the site of the fracture.

Broken foot next steps

If you wish to see if you have an accident claim as a result of a broken bone, please contact us. Please also use the information on the pages below to find out more.