Question

1. Name and explain three types of soft tissue injuries. How would the nurse manage a soft tissue injury?(contusion, sprain, strain)

2. What is the difference between a compound fracture and a greenstick fracture? What are the signs and symptoms of a fracture?

3. Which fracture indicates child abuse?

4. Explain compartment syndrome using the five P’s.

Answer 1

Answers:

A soft tissue injury is defined as the damage of muscles, ligaments, or tendons in body. Soft tissue injury causes pain, swelling, bruising and damage to tissues. Common soft injuries are contusion, sprain, and strain.  

Contusion is an injury to the soft tissue caused by an accident, kick, fall, or blow. It causes pain, swelling, and discoloration of skin due to bleeding. Treatment for contusion includes rest, apply ice to affected area, using anti inflammatory drugs for reduce inflammation, etc.

Sprain is defined as the abnormal stretching or tearing of ligament that supports a joint. Sprain occurs due to inappropriate or sudden flexion, extension, or twisting a joint beyond its normal range of motion. Sprain commonly occurs on knees, ankles, or wrists. Treatment for sprain is using anti inflmmatory drugs for reduce inflammation, rest of injured area, applying ice to injured area, etc.

Strain is defined as the abnormal stretching or tearring of a muscle or tendon. It is caused by an accident, over usage of a particular muscle, wrong way usage of muscles, etc. Treatment includes anti inflammatory drugs, rest, and icing of affected area.

Compound fracture is termed as open fracture. It is a fracture in which there is an open wound in the skin near the broken bone region. Common causes are accident, falls, over use, and osteoporosis. Signs and symptoms are severe pain, punctured skin with exposed to bone, difficult to move the affected part, swelling, tenderness, etc.

Green stick fracture is termed as incomplete fracture. Here the broken bone is not completely seperated. Generally, it occurs in long bones. Sign and symptoms are pain, bruising, swelling, tenderness, and bending deformity of affected body part.

Signs and symptoms of fracture: Severe pain, punctured skin with exposed to bone, unable to move injured region, swelling of affected part, tenderness, bruising, deformities like bending or twisting of affected body part, nausea, vomiting, etc are main signs and symptoms of a fracture.

Fracture indicates child abuse: Fractures are the common injuries caused by child abuse. Long bone fractures are commonly seen in children regarding the child abuse. From that, single bone with diaphyseal fracture is most common fracture found in children. The femur, humerus and tibia are common long bones to be fractured by child abuse. Other child abuse fractures can be linear skull fractures, rib fractures, etc.

Compartment syndrome is a condition where major nerves and arteries in the lower leg may be pinched by pressure caused from surrounding structures. This condition can occur from an accident or from sternous prolonged exercises or activities. The five P's of compartment syndrome are pain, pallor (skin color changes into pale), paresthesia (feeling of numbness), pulselessness (faint pulse), and paralysis (weakness with movement).