Please Share Your Experience with a Broken Arm

[Mrs. Ciz]

Hi all,

I very badly broke my left arm in a pickleball fall 3 months ago. Both the radius and ulna broke, the radius in an butterfly fracture, and the end of the ulna near the wrist (not the broken part) broke through the skin. I had surgery to repair the breaks with plates and screws 2 days after I broke it and have been in weekly hand therapy ever since. I’m getting my strength back, can pronate and almost completely supinate my hand now. I’m still working on that. So things are definitely improving. The surgeon told me to start weaning myself off the brace over a month ago.

The issue is that my arm still aches, especially my ulna. It gets so bad that sometimes it wakes me up at night. After a couple of days without the brace, I have to put the brace back to give myself some relief. I mentioned it to my surgeon at my 3 month follow up appointment today, which was when I was supposed to be released. He took X-rays, and those look great. It appears to be healing as it should. But because I’ve said it is still really sore, he’s sending me for a CT scan.

So here’s my issue. It’s a new year and a new deductible with high deductible health insurance. I don’t want to pay for a CT scan if it’s totally normal for a broken arm to still ache at the 3 month mark. Maybe I just need more healing time? I’m a little paranoid because when my right knee replacement took longer to heal than it should have and was very sore, I didn’t think anything of it. And that turned out to be an infection in my tibia bone! So I have no idea what is normal and what is not for a broken arm.

Please share your experiences.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I badly broke my right humerus bone in 2019. I have a titanium rod implanted permanently in my upper arm from shoulder to elbow. It still aches to this very day, not to the extent to where I'd say it was actual pain, more like 'I'm still here, don't forget.'

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I badly broke my right humerus bone in 2019. I have a titanium rod implanted permanently in my upper arm from shoulder to elbow. It still aches to this very day, not to the extent to where I'd say it was actual pain, more like 'I'm still here, don't forget.'

Ugh. That’s what I’m afraid of.

 

[LuvOrlando]

If you are worried about infection take to your Dr, if it happened before it makes sense that you are worried and a blood test should be able to rule it out.

Maybe try Lidocaine cream there is OTC but prescription strength is still cheap, or Voltaren Gel, both do a good job of numbing but you should ask your Dr.

 

[abdmom]

I broke my upper humerus in 2 places 7 years ago. I didn't have surgery. I did have lots of PT. Around the 3 month mark, I had to start hand PT because I couldn't pinch or grasp any more because I hadn't been able to seriously use it for so long.

I asked my ortho doctor when it would stop hurting. I was appalled when he said 18 months. Surely not! But it was right on the mark. Around 18 months, it stopped hurting when I reached for something in the cupboard.

A couple of weeks ago, it started to hurt at the site where the arm was broken. I guess I overdid it in carrying something.

I used a lot of Salon Pas in the first few months.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I broke my upper humerus in 2 places 7 years ago. I didn't have surgery. I did have lots of PT. Around the 3 month mark, I had to start hand PT because I couldn't pinch or grasp any more because I hadn't been able to seriously use it for so long.

I asked my ortho doctor when it would stop hurting. I was appalled when he said 18 months. Surely not! But it was right on the mark. Around 18 months, it stopped hurting when I reached for something in the cupboard.

A couple of weeks ago, it started to hurt at the site where the arm was broken. I guess I overdid it in carrying something.

I used a lot of Salon Pas in the first few months.

Thank you for letting me know it could take up to 18 months to feel normal. That’s very helpful!

 

[princesscinderella]

I broke my wrist and it took almost a year to gain my full mobility back but trying to do push ups and planks is still uncomfortable. The ache took a while too. I couldn’t believe how bad it throbbed the first few weeks after it happened. It was a bad idea for me to try and relive my childhood at a roller skating birthday party for my daughter’s friend.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

OP here,
My surgeon has decided he wants a CT scan, so he can see if there is anything going on with my arm. So we will see.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

OP here,
My surgeon has decided he wants a CT scan, so he can see if there is anything going on with my arm. So we will see.

Good luck!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

Good luck!

Thank you!!!

I guess with my knee replacement implant infection in 2021, he doesn’t want to take any chances.