Urgent Care or Emergency Room: Fractures, Sprains, & Injuries

Urgent Care or Emergency Room: Fractures, Sprains, & Injuries

March 8, 2023

Sustaining injuries is not a pleasant experience because the damage caused can vary significantly. For example, fractures and sprains are injuries you may sustain by participating in physical activities where accidents can occur. In addition, you can sustain injuries when playing outdoors, exercising, or working in a physically demanding job.

What do you do anything when you think you have broken something? If you damage your bones, determining the injury’s severity is essential to decide on the care you need to help in the healing process. You cannot afford to think your body will heal itself, assuming the injuries are not severe, even when you need medical attention. If you leave the injury untreated, it might result in permanent bone or ligament damage.

How to determine whether you are dealing with a broken bone or sprains? How do you ascertain whether in urgent care near me or the situation warrants an emergency room visit?

Below are the differences between fractures and sprains with information to determine the appropriate care needed.

Fractures: your bones can fracture if they sustain physical forces more significant than the bone can handle. Alternatively called broken bones, there are different kinds of fractures depending on the significance of the impact and whether earlier trauma is also present. Some types of bone fractures include the following:

  • Partial or Incomplete Fracture: a bone can result in an incomplete fracture. Children routinely suffer from incomplete structures resulting in bone bending or bowing.
  • Closed or Simple Fracture: bones sustaining a break without penetrating the skin are classified as closed or simple fractures.
  • Open or Compound Fractures: if the bone breaks through the skin and becomes visible because of the impact of the force, it is called an open or compound fracture.
  • Complete fracture: bones breaking in two or more places are called complete fractures.
  • Stress Fractures: alternatively called hairline fractures, make it seem the bone has a crack.
  • Compression Fractures: compression fractures have a flatter appearance and occur when the bone is crushed, or bone loss has occurred.

Bones can break in some people with osteoporosis or arthritis. It results from bone density loss causing the bones to become weaker and susceptible to breaking.

Sprains: trauma generally causes sprains tearing, or stretching of the supporting ligaments around the joint. Ankles are the most common where sprains occur because the feet are involved in working, running, and other activities. Ankle sprains are also common among athletes. However, sprains can also occur in the wrist or knee.

Sprains do not have different kinds besides the severity of the condition. However, they include the following:

  • Grade 1 Sprains or Mild: Grade 1 sprains result from stretched ligaments with no tearing.
  • Grade 2 or Moderate Sprains: grade 2 sprains involved ligament stretches with minor tearing.
  • Grade 3 Sprains or Severe: grade 3 sprains involve ligament stretching and complete tearing.

Injuries: you might not find yourself experiencing merely fractures or sprains because they are not the only injuries that occur. Injuries can happen due to accidents without any warning signs. If you have a cut, laceration, or other wounds or damages, you must visit the urgent care clinic near me or an emergency room if you experience severe pain, excessive bleeding, weakness, or a feeling of losing consciousness.

While safety is crucial, accidents can and do happen, and urgent care centers can provide you with the help you need.

Emergency Room or Urgent Care

If you have sustained an injury and think you have broken a bone or have a sprain consider visiting urgent care in Richmond, TX, offering walk-in facilities for treatment. Unfortunately, if you feel your situation is a genuine emergency, kindly do not hesitate to call 911 or visit an emergency room nearby for care.

Urgent care facilities can diagnose and treat fractures and sprains after diagnosing their severity. They have the infrastructure to take x-rays, analyze the kind of fracture or sprain and deliver proper care. They can also help you determine whether you must visit an emergency room if the injury is severe and warrants treatment options like surgery. If you need surgery, an emergency room is an optimal place to visit. However, why confuse yourself if you are in the vicinity of the Richmond urgent medical Center, open all days a week from 9 AM to 7 PM, to provide the attention needed upon arrival at the clinic?

Sunrise Urgent Care Center provides urgent care for fractures, sprains, or any injuries you might suffer during the ordinary course of your day. Consult the facility for the treatment you need in any of the above situations by visiting them on any day of the week.

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