Broken hand

Broken hand overview

The hand is one of the easiest areas of the body to break due to the amount of time that the hand is used. A broken hand can have a major impact on a person’s quality of life depending on the type of break and if the person will fully recover from the broken hand.
The hand is composed of 27 bones, including those in the wrist. Broken hands are usually as a result of a direct impact to the hand or a fall. The bones that are most commonly broken in the hand fall into several classifications. The Carpals which are the 8 bones in the wrist. The Metacarpals which are the 5 bones that form the palm of the hand. The Phalanges which are the 14 small bones that form the thumb and fingers. The knuckles, and the joints. It is common place with broken hands that more than one of these bones will be broken. Broken hands are often placed in a plaster cast or brace. The purpose of the cast is to ensure that the bones are correctly aligned when they begin to heal again. In some circumstances where the broken hand is more serious, a surgical procedure may be required.

Broken hand impact characteristics

Depending on the type of impact a bone in the hand 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 carry weight. A simple break is the most common type of broken hand. An impacted fracture is often caused by falls in this type of broken hand, one end of the bone is forced into the other. A spiral fracture is a break around the bone. Comminuted fractures, where a bone breaks into fragments, or compression fractures are the most common types of broken hand sustained in road traffic accidents due to the large forces involved.
We are experts in helping all of those who have sustained a broken hand. 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 hand recovery

A simple break takes on average 8 weeks to repair. As with all injures the timescales for a broken hand 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 bone 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 hand next steps

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