broken toe?

F

fiefiemew

New member
I'm not really sure, but as long as the circulation to the toe is not compromised (blood is still getting in and out) and the skin is intact, it's probably not a dire emergency. It takes more than a few hours for healing to really begin.

Of course, I don't know how to check the circulation in a toe that's presumably already turned horrible colors from bruising.

The biggest issue at this point is swelling. If the injured part is too swollen, it can be harder to even get a clear x-ray picture, much less reduce the fracture or dislocation and cast it.
 
About 30 minutes ago, I accidentally kicked a chair really hard as I was walking by, and my second toe from my big toe hurt so bad. I could still bend it, so I didn't think it was broken, but then I looked at it and noticed that it's crooked now. All my toes were parallel before, but now that one is pointing towards the one to the left of it (almost overlapping it), and there's a gap between the injured one and the one to the right. It started swelling really quickly, so I put ice on it for 20 minutes or so, but it's still really swollen. I can hardly bend it now because it's so swollen. It also looks like it has a bump on the side of it.
So does it sound like it's broken? Is it always true that if you can bend it it's not broken? But then why is it crooked? Will it be like that forever now?
Thanks.
 
Thanks, everyone for your replies.
In case anyone was wondering, I did end up going to the ER at lunchtime yesterday (I was there waiting for 3 hours. ugh). But they x-rayed it, and it turns out it is broken. They said it's probably crooked because of the swelling because the x-ray didn't show that it was out of place. But there is a crack in the bone. So they just taped it to the toe next to it, and sent me on my way with one of those ugly shoes and some crutches.
 
Could be broken, could be one of the joints is dislocated, either way if it is visibly deformed like that, you probably want to have a doctor set it so it heals straight. Is it real late at night where you are? Unless the break is so bad the skin is broken, you probably don't have to go to the ER in the middle of the night, but get to medical attention within 24 hours, in any case. You really don't want it to heal crooked!

It's not true that it's always impossible to move a body part that's broken.
 
I have one more question... at the ER, they didn't tell me how long to keep my toe buddy taped, and I didn't think of it until after I left... so how long do you generally keep a broken toe buddy taped? I don't want to take the tape off too early and risk damaging it again.
Thanks!
 
Thank you!
Yes, it was 12:30 AM when I posted this, so it was a little late, so I may go to the Walk-In Center at lunch time (as it would take too long to get in to see my doctor, and I don't know if the ER is a little extreme at this point). Do you think a Walk-In is a good idea even though I don't know if they have x-ray equipment on-site, or should I go to the ER?
 
I'm not sure the walk-in clinic would have the equipment to treat it, or necessarily have an orthopedist or podiatrist to fix it today. You could call them and ask, though.

Keep it elevated, you don't want the swelling making it harder to treat.
 
Hmmm, ok. Do you think it would be too long to wait until about 5:00 to go to the ER (about 7 hours from now)? I'd like to be able to work a full day today, but I also don't want to wait too long until it can't be corrected...
 
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