How to Splint a Fracture in an Emergency

A fracture is a break in the bone and can occur almost anywhere in the body. Splinting a fracture until medical help arrives increases the likelihood of the injured bone healing correctly and can also significantly reduce the pain for the person who has the fracture. The key to correctly splinting a fracture in an emergency is to move the injured person's body as little as possible. You should splint the limb in the position you find it. These splints can be made from many everyday objects.

Instructions

• 1

  Assess the fracture. Look for any bleeding, deformities or swelling by comparing the injury to the other healthy limbs. If there is no serious bleeding and the bone has not pierced the skin, then continue with splinting. If these two things have occurred, call 911 and follow their instructions.

• 2

  Gather splinting material. Poles, sweatshirts, towels, magazines and blankets are all suitable splints.

• 3

  Collect objects to tie the splint together. These items can include bandages, ribbons, yarn, shoe laces and belts.

• 4

  Push the splint carefully under or around the fracture. Do not move or straighten the injured limb. For example, if you are dealing with a fractured ankle and you have towel for a splint, you would fold the towel into a long rectangle and then slide it around the base of the foot so that it forms a u-shape up the leg. For a fractured arm, you could use a magazine. Place the magazine underneath the arm and then curve it up and around the arm in a u-shape.

• 5

  Tie the splint in place. Put at least one tie above and below the injury. Never place the tie directly over the fracture. Slowly ease a belt or bandage under the injured limb and tie in place. For example, if you are splinting the ankle for the example above, then you would slide the tie under the leg with the injured ankle and tie the towel in place just below the knee and just above the ankle. Make sure the tie is tight enough to hold the splint in place, but loose enough that it does not interfere with circulation. Check for signs that the skin is turning purple or going numb. Loosen and re-tie if necessary.

• 6

  Seek medical assistance. Reassure the person who is injured that everything will be okay and monitor their vital signs.