Q.An incomplete fracture in which the bone bends and cracks on one side but does not break all the way through, seen almost exclusively in children, is called a:
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →A bone that bends and cracks on one side but does not break through is a greenstick fracture — the classic paediatric injury, named after a green twig. The answer is (c).
Concept understanding — complete versus incomplete fractures
A fracture is any break in the continuity of a bone. The first and most useful division is:
- Complete fracture — the break runs right across the bone; the bone is now in two or more separate pieces.
- Incomplete fracture — the crack goes only part of the way through; the bone is deformed but still in one piece.
The greenstick fracture is the classic incomplete fracture. The bone is bent by the force; the side that is stretched (the convex, outer side) gives way and cracks, while the side that is compressed (the concave, inner side) merely buckles and holds.
Why the name? Take a fresh, green twig off a tree and try to snap it. It does not break in two — it bends, splinters along one side, and stays joined. Take a dry, dead stick and it snaps cleanly. A child's bone behaves like the green twig; an adult's behaves like the dry stick.
Why it happens almost only in children
The material properties of a child's bone are genuinely different:
- More collagen, less mineral. Collagen gives bone its flexibility; mineral gives it stiffness and brittleness. A child's bone is proportionally richer in the flexible component, so it deforms under load rather than shattering.
- A thick, tough periosteum. The fibrous sleeve around a child's bone is thicker and much more firmly attached than an adult's. It acts like a sheath around the twig, holding the cracked side together and preventing the break from running through.
- Growing, porous bone. Immature bone is more porous, which lets a crack blunt and stop instead of propagating.
As the skeleton matures, mineral content rises, the periosteum thins, and the same fall that would have bent a child's radius will now break an adult's clean through.
Recognition and immediate management
| Sign | What you observe |
|---|---|
| Pain and tenderness | Sharp, localised at the crack |
| Deformity | The limb looks bent or bowed rather than obviously broken |
| Swelling | Moderate, over the site |
| Loss of function | The child refuses to use the limb |
Immediate management:
- Stop the activity and do not let the child use or straighten the limb.
- Immobilise the limb in the position found, with a splint that spans the joints above and below.
- Ice and elevate to control swelling.
- Refer for X-ray and medical care — a doctor confirms the fracture and casts it.
Never try to "straighten out" a bent limb on the field. A greenstick fracture is still a fracture: forcing it can convert the incomplete crack into a complete break, and can drive bone ends against nerves and vessels.
The outlook is good precisely because the injury is incomplete and the periosteum is intact — the bone is already partly splinted by its own sleeve, and a child's rapid remodelling straightens residual bend over time.
Refuting the other options …
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