Duration

The entire treatment of an upper arm fracture can extend over several weeks and months until it is fully functional. In younger people with a good bone structure and uncomplicated fractures, bone healing takes place significantly faster. How long a plaster cast is necessary depends on the speed of bone healing.

The doctor follows the healing process by taking x-rays of the arm at regular intervals. In this way he can decide when the cast can be removed. This is usually the case after about four to ten weeks.

After an operation, bone healing is generally faster if the fracture ends are fixed with nails or plates. Immobilization is followed by functional therapy (e.g. physiotherapeutic exercises) to restore the strength and freedom of movement of the arm. In the case of an upper arm fracture, it usually takes at least several weeks until healing in the sense of complete resilience and freedom from pain occurs.

Fixing the broken arm during surgery accelerates bone healing. However, conservative therapy is often sufficient. For this purpose, the arm must be immobilized in a plaster cast for about four to ten weeks.

This is followed by functional training in the sense of physiotherapy. The patient should regain his strength and freedom of movement in the arm. It can take several weeks before this goal is reached and the patient is allowed to do sports again.

This depends mainly on the age and the quality of the patient’s bone structure. In any case, it is advisable to follow the recommendations of the treating physician to prevent relapses and permanent pain and limitations. Due to a better ability to regenerate, bone fractures heal faster in children than in adults.

Therefore uncomplicated fractures of the arm in children can also be treated conservatively. For this, the arm must be put in a cast and worn in a loop (so-called Gilchrist bandage). The cast is worn for about four weeks, depending on the age of the child.

In between, the doctor takes further x-rays to assess the healing process and to determine when the cast can be removed. During an operation, the two ends of the fracture are brought close together with a nail or plate so that the fracture can heal directly. This then happens more quickly than with purely conservative treatment.

Functional therapy is also possible with children (e.g.B. Physiotherapy) after immobilization is necessary to fully restore freedom of movement. It can take several weeks and months before the child is able to bear the full weight, depending on the age of the child, the location and complexity of the fracture.

How long the operation for an upper arm fracture takes depends primarily on the localization and complexity of the fracture. In general, it can be said that the surgery for an upper arm fracture can take between thirty minutes and several hours. If a simple fracture is present, it can be repositioned relatively quickly and fixed with a nail or plate.

In the case of more complicated fractures involving, for example, a joint, considerably more time must be planned. If there is a comminuted fracture of the humeral head, it must be replaced by an implant, which also involves a longer operation time. If complications occur, which can be the case for example with a poor bone structure in older people, the operation can also be significantly delayed.

How long a plaster cast must be worn in the case of an upper arm fracture depends on many factors. First of all, the location of the fracture is decisive: it makes a difference whether the fracture is located at the head or shaft of the humerus. In addition, it is of course also decisive whether the cast is the only therapy or whether the cast was applied after an operation.

During an operation, the ends of the fracture are fixed together using nails, plates or wires. This leads to direct bone healing, which is much faster than bone healing with conservative therapy. Furthermore, the wearing period depends on the age of the patient, the older the patient, the slower the bone healing tends to be.

In children, a bone fracture usually heals particularly quickly. In adults, the plaster cast must be worn for about four to ten weeks. The doctor checks the healing process in between with X-rays and can thus decide how long the cast must still be worn.