Does this need medical attention today ?

[medianewbie]

Ds, 18, ASD, fell upstairs last night. Screamed, but hurt his toe mostly. This morning it isn't particularly swollen but he doesn't have the range of movement that he has in his other ties/ foot.
(Qus like: 'does it hurt' are not straightforward due to his Autism). I'm 5m from a small country hospital but reluctant to bother them if A. Unnecessary B. they could 'do anything' anyway. Any advice please ?

I imagine I might get some: 'are you daft? it's a sore toenail!' replies but I wondered if he's broken it. I broke my ankle a few years ago & it wasn't seen to properly & it still hurts so I don't want to neglect it if he needs it checked over iyswim.

Unfortunately even if it's cracked they won't be able to do much if it's at the end of the toe.

It doesn't look massively swollen, I would keep an eye on it but not rush off to a&e just yet...

I wouldn’t feel he needed looking at if it was my son.
I think maybe trim the nail a bit and soak in some warm water.

I wouldn't think it was any more than a bumped/bruised toe. It'll hurt but it'll get better soon. Ice and regular anti inflammatories.

It does look sore, but I don't think it particularly needs anything doing with it, ice, rest, ibuprofen.

My DS did similar last week, his nail is now a nice shade of purple but other than that ok. We gave ibuprofen and iced it. Hope he's feeling better soon

If he’s just bruised it then the most they’ll do is strap it together anyway which you can do at home. Have you given him some pain killers? He may just be afraid to walk on it and until the bruising or swelling goes down then he may not have the full range of movement. See how it goes.

It’s not something I would get my DC seen for, mine are also asd so I understand how difficult it can be to assess their pain. But it really doesn’t look that bruised or swollen.

Is that some bruising down at the base of his big toe?

What exactly do you think the doctors would do? It doesn't look swollen and although probably a little sore and bruised, as long as he isn't screaming in pain and unable to move it, I wouldn't bother a doctor with something this minor. Ice it and elevate it for a bit.

No to A&E, theres nothing they can do. I broke my toe once and they just told me to strap it and it will heal in 6 weeks!.

Sorry going against the grain as my teen son has managed to break his big toe twice.
for all the other toes they are strapped against other toes or nothing is done
for a broken big toe the child is given a boot to avoid incorrect healing and balance issues later in
life. The nhs website will tell you that big toes need to be xrayed.
My son was going on a school trip overseas the next morning on his first break and we knew he wouldn’t be seen in time are a&e so paid a private gp to look at his toe - he put pressure on the toe in different places to see if there was any particular part that hurt more. If your son has issues with feedback watch his face to see if he winced.
personally without seeing your son’s other toe it’s hard to see how swollen it is and it doesn’t look broken to me - but he could have a crack or a chip. If you have a minor injuries unit near you and ring 111 they should be able to book you an X-ray if you are concerned