School with broken arm.

[HereThereIsNoWhy]

Posting for traffic. My 4.5 year old DS broke his arm, two broken bones in lower arm. He's in a full arm cast. Do I need to keep him off school until his first fracture clinic appointment?

TIA

Lots of broken arms in out family (hectic boys). As long as in a cast they have gone to school. Breaktimes they were given a chair and small toy to play with. School administered calpol (avoid ibuprofen). Ad for clothes, I brought cheap polo shirts in school colours and sliced the sleeves

Oh and put tracksuit bottoms on as easy to pull up and down. We also got foam slings as more comfortable

My 7 year old broke her arm a few months ago. Same as your son.
I think I kept her off for 1 - 2 days after she had her cast on and that was it.
She wasn’t asking for pain relief by then.

Forgot to mention - even after the op he needed very little painkillers. Certainly a dose of calpol or brufen before school lasted the day
A lot of the pain from a fracture is when it’s moving. So once it’s immobilised in a cast or pinned that helps hugely.

Mine went back 2 days after...she'd broken her wrist riding a bike on a Sunday afternoon. By the time we got home she was exhausted so had the next day to rest. The only issue she had was that, as it was her dominant hand, daughter couldn't write (no laptops back then). The upside was no homework other than reading assignments

Toileting factors is a very reasonable factor to consider when keeping him off or not.

I’d keep him off if he’s struggling to go to the loo

I would keep him off til I was sure the pain was under control and that he could cope with his own toileting/eating needs (except obv carrying a tray which is easy for someone to help with!)

How odd. I can not even think that I'd consider sending my young child to school when they've just broken their arm. Seems odd youd even ask - all you'll get is the "I sent mine in 2 hours later" brigade. I'd keep him off OP sounds awful x

I’d keep him off while he’s having difficulty with the toilet and while he’s on regular painkillers. I’d definitely keep him off until his first fracture clinic appointment and follow up X-ray - it’s not unknown for badly displaced fractures to move in the cast and then need plating or pinning, and that’s less likely to happen at home.

No school for him if it's just plaster of paris, as it isn't enough protection if it gets bumped etc - this was the advice given to my mother when I broke my wrist, and I doubt that has changed.

Fracture clinic will hopefully put him in a sturdier cast.

Dd has to miss 5 days and when she went back she had to be walked to and from class when the hallways were empty because the doctors were extremely concerned about her getting bumped at all. That restriction lasted 6 weeks. She was not allowed p.e. or recess for 3 months.

She had a severe break.

There is such a huge range, I would call the hospital that did the initial treatment and ask

What kinds of casts are there, besides plaster of paris?

No-one can tell you what the school will say as it differs by school.

Advise them of the situation and any medical advice, make it clear what support he will need.

They will take advice including from their insurers and they will let you know if he can return to school and what steps need to be put in place to accommodate this.

@YeOldeTrout Fibreglass is one kind. It's lighter and doesn't dissolve in water, which I imagine is a fairly big plus. (You're still not supposed to get them wet, though, for different reasons)

There are also 3D printed splints although whether they’ve made them into mainstream ortho yet I don’t know. The main two are plaster of paris and fibreglass. Fibreglass casts are usually put on at the first fracture clinic appointment once they’ve checked that the break is in an appropriate position. They’re more resistant to knocks and bumps than plaster of paris.

Is Fibreglass fairly new? Think I haven't seen one. Our last break was.... summer 2018 (plaster). Prior to that was 2010 & 2011.

I had a fibreglass cast in the 1990s, so not that new.