Broken tibia, is a full leg cast the norm?

[nowttodowithme]

My 7 year old DD broke her tibia a week ago. It's about four inches above her foot and described as a bad break.

She's been put in a full (bright pink) cast well over her knee.

She's really struggling with it, not allowed to weight bear, no crutches, only a frame in the house and wheelchair outside.

We've got fracture clinic on Thursday and she's convinced they'll put a half cast on. How likely is this for a tibia break?

What usually happens in a fracture clinic? My boss has allowed me 2 hours off work, I'm so tired I couldn't be bothered to argue with him. It's a half hour journey each way, I then have to take to my parents and make a 20 min drive to work! So I'm thinking two hours isn't going to happen so know he won't be impressed.

Should I prepare her that she's not getting a half cast or going back to school. She's so fed up lugging this cast around and doesn't get that there's nothing we can do.

Only five weeks to go!

I broke tib and fib as a 12 year old. I was in plaster from tip of toe to top of thigh for 6 weeks. I was encouraged to mobilise though. Mine was a heavy old fashioned plaster of Paris, I'm sure hers is a lightweight one!

My 19 month old has just broken hers. She was put in a full cast in A&E but swapped for a below the knee weight bearing cast at fracture clinic. We were told to let her walk/crawl/basically whatever she wanted on it. It will completely depend on the severity of the break though.

My ds had a spiral fracture of the tibia just before Easter and I'm afraid he was in a full cast the whole time. (He's only 4 though.). However, a pupil I teach had exactly the same injury and he was in a full cast for 4 weeks and then they reduced it below the knee for a further four weeks. (He's 11). I think it unlikely they'll reduce it yet even if they do. Sorry! Wishing your dd a speedy recovery. It's surprisingly traumatic having a child with a broken leg!

It's a lightweight cast but an itchy one!

The physio was adamant she must not weight bear, they said she's too little for crutches and gave her a funky blue Zimmer frame.

I had to hire a wheelchair and it took five calls to find one at £10 a week.

11 weeks oh dear me, I can't cope for that long. It's just the two of us and her dad lives 250 miles away. My back and hips are in bits carrying her to the car.

I've also got to work five hours a day, so my parents in their 70's are looking after her which I feel bad about.

Oh how awful for her to be in a cast over the summer :( mine was a full leg cast but my break was up higher than your daughter's. Fingers crossed she will be able to go into the shorter cast. I didn't find the lightweight one too bad and not that itchy compared to the first plaster one they had me in.

My DS broke his, but it was near the knee. He had a full cast for 6 weeks then a braced cast (plaster above and below knee with knee free, connected by hinged metal braces) for a further 3! He was not impressed. The Red Cross hires wheelchairs for a donation here- we had to phone them after 6 weeks to ask to keep it as he got the 2nd cast. He was a small 9 year old and given crutches but the chair got him to and from school, and kept him safe whilst at school.
My MIL did lots of the entertaining until he went back to school, sat and played board games, watched films etc, but then the school took him in his chair, but "couldn't help him if the needed the toilet"! At home we out a box in the loo for him to rest his leg on as it was uncomfortable sucking straight out. Luckily he has never used a school loo in his life. They agreed, in case of need, a friend could hold the door and to not lock it, but they were concerned he would need help doing trousers up, or wiping I think.

Your fracture clinic is hopefully quicker than ours. Every visit took forever by the time I had waited for x ray, again to see the consultant and again for the plaster room.

Saying that, my fracture happened during a very bad winter where they had a ridiculous number if patients to deal with.

Hope it heals quickly x

Well, I had a spiral break of the tibia (which apparently is bad) and had no plaster cast at all! But I did have surgery to put in rods, pins and plates though. Didn't have to be told not to bear weight - couldn't even think about it for weeks and weeks.

It seems, from all these posts, that it entirely depends on the nature of the break.

But your boss sounds a pain in the arse. Doesn't he have to allow you some sort of Dependants' leave? (I'm no authority on this, though).

Sounds tough all round. Good luck with it all.