With the current cold spell lingering on, the risk of falls due to slippery paths and roadways remains. Most of the time we are lucky but sometimes, you can sustain what you think is a painful sprain or stain but which in fact could be a fracture. So how could you tell the difference?
When assessing strains and sprains we use R.I.C.E. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. The key component being the application of ice (not directly on the skin) for 10 minutes. This reduces swelling and speeds recovery. This is an important part both of the assessment and treatment of such injuries but often this simple task is carried out incorrectly, compromising the treatment and increasing the risk of further injury.
Although the application of ice will start to freeze the injury site within 3-4 minutes, the cooling is literally only skin deep. It takes up to 10 minutes for the cold to penetrate deep into the injured tissue but a lot of people remove the ice after a minute or two when it starts to make the skin cold.
The signs and symptoms of soft tissue injuries are the same as a fracture. If the ice relieves pain and improves mobility of the injured site, we assume it is a sprain/strain but we can be wrong. You should always advise your patient to consider having the injury properly assessed especially if it starts to get worse.
If the ice worked, you need to apply a compression (crepe) bandage and rest the injured limb. Most people though (especially those playing sports) assume the ice has cured all and forget that it takes a lot longer than just 10 minutes for such an injury to heal.
