Wrist injury

Wrist injury overview

The wrist consists of the radius and ulna, along with 8 carpal bones. Wrist injuries usually take the form of a sprain or break. A sprain involves tearing of the ligaments, with a broken wrist being a crack or complete break of the wrist bone or bones. Wrist injuries, especially broken wrists are very common with approximately 25% of patients attending fracture clinics doing so as a result of a broken wrist.

Types of wrist fracture and wrist break

The wrist usually breaks a couple of centimetres from the wrist joint. Depending on the severity of the impact causing the wrist injury the injury may affect both of the joints which facilitate wrist movement. During the healing process the injured wrist may experience one bone becoming shorter than the other. This can result in a long term restriction of movement.

Wrist injury repair

A simple fracture takes on average 8 weeks to repair. As with all injures the timescales for a wrist injury 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 wrist injury 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.

Wrist injury treatment

A fractured wrist is usually characterised by pain and swelling. Immediate treatment consists of immobilisation of the injured wrist in a sling or plaster cast. With more seriously injured wrists surgical procedures may be required to ensure the bones are correctly aligned before they begin to heal.

Wrist injury next steps

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