First aid topic · Injuries & everyday care

Fractures and dislocations

Also known as: broken bone, dislocation, splinting, open fracture, compound fracture

A broken bone is rarely life-threatening in itself, but the sharp ends can cut vessels and nerves, and the femur and pelvis can bleed litres into surrounding tissue. First aid means keeping the limb still in the position found, controlling bleeding, and getting the person to imaging without making things worse.

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Recognise it

  • Pain, swelling and bruising over a bone after injury
  • Deformity, shortening or an unnatural angle; a grating sensation
  • Inability to bear weight or use the limb
  • Open fracture: bone visible or a wound over the break
  • Dislocation: a joint out of shape, locked, with intense pain (shoulders, fingers, kneecaps most often)

What to do

  1. Keep the injured part stillTell them not to move it. Support it in the position found with your hands, rolled clothing or cushions. Do not try to straighten it.
  2. Control bleeding and cover open woundsApply pressure around, not on, protruding bone. Cover the wound with a clean dressing.
  3. Immobilise for transportFor an arm, a sling or securing it to the body; for a leg, padding between the legs and broad bandages tying it to the uninjured leg above and below the break, not over it. Splint only if trained and the person must be moved.
  4. Check circulation beyond the injuryColour, warmth and sensation in the fingers or toes before and after immobilising; loosen bandages if they become pale, cold or numb.
  5. Cool, comfort and go to hospitalIce wrapped in cloth for 20 minutes reduces swelling. Nothing to eat or drink in case surgery is needed. Call an ambulance for legs, hips, pelvis, spine or if they cannot be moved safely.

Do not

  • Do not try to push a dislocated joint back or straighten a deformed limb
  • Do not move someone with a suspected spinal, hip or pelvic injury unless in immediate danger
  • Do not give food or drink
  • Do not let them walk on a suspected leg fracture

Get medical help when

  • Suspected fractures of the thigh, hip, pelvis or spine, or any open fracture
  • A limb that is pale, cold, numb or pulseless beyond the injury
  • Head, neck or back injury, or an injury from a major mechanism (fall from height, road collision)
  • Signs of shock

Why it works: the anatomy

Bone is stiff and fails suddenly under bending or twisting loads; the periosteum and marrow are richly supplied with blood, so every fracture bleeds. The femoral shaft can hide 1-1.5 litres and a pelvic fracture more. Keeping the ends still limits bleeding, pain and further damage to the nerves and arteries that run alongside every long bone (the radial nerve on the humerus, the popliteal artery behind the knee). Healing begins with a haematoma that becomes soft callus in weeks and hard bone in months.

Educational content. Written to follow current resuscitation and first-aid guidance, but no page replaces a certified first-aid course. When in doubt, call emergency services.