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Original poster

dd1 and her 'pulled elbow'

13 replies

misdee · 09/12/2004 21:15

got a call from dd1 nursery today saying that dd1 had hurt her arm and could we pick her up. we got there and her arm was hanging down, very limp and she couldnt move it. so we took her to the hospital. whilst we were there she started using it again, but the doc wanted to see her anyway. he said she has whats called a pulled elbow, basically just the koint moved out slightly but as she is using it means it should be ok.

feel very silly, think next time we'll take dd1 home 1st and see how she is.

OP posts:

WhizzzYouAMerryXmas · 09/12/2004 21:21

Poor thing - how did it get pulled though ?

pixiefish · 09/12/2004 21:24

Don't berate yourself for doing the best for your child . you weren't to know what it was and I think you did the right thing taking her to see a doctor- it could well have been something else

MerryTissMas · 09/12/2004 21:29

misdee, don't feel silly, it is a very common condition in children. "Pulled elbow" is just what it sounds like, though- someone pulled her elbow, in order for the joint to partially dislocate . It doesn't happen on its own, and won't have been caused by a fall or another child.It might I suppose, be caused by her hanging by one arm from a climbing frame , or something like that. It happens particularly if a child is being lifted by one arm , for example when being dragged across a road, or being picked up in the middle of a strop. Did you ask the nursery exactly how it happened? I'm not saying that anyone is to blame, or was careless, it happens to the most careful and loving of parents, but something like that must have happened, and if they are aware, they may be able to prevent it happening again.

\link{http://www.uihealthcare.com/topics/bonesjointsmuscles/bone3449.html\pulled elbow}

busybusychristmashatter · 09/12/2004 21:40

dd1 had pulled elbow - we inflicted it on her ourselves - by swinging her in the middle of us while we were walking. No-one ever told us you shouldn't really do that until they're about 2 . We took her to hospital and they just had a look and said it will get better and it did. Felt very embarrassed though as earlier on the same walk she had fallen so she had a big graze on her face. negligent parents or what.

You should most definitely not feel silly for taking her to hospital though - she wasn't using her arm and you're not a medic - how could you possibly be expected to do anything else?

DoesntChristmasDragOn · 09/12/2004 21:51

Dh did this to DS1 pulling him out of the way of a speeding car.

busybusychristmashatter · 09/12/2004 22:21

good name doesnt

Original poster

misdee · 09/12/2004 22:31

sorry, dd1 friend did pull her!!

they were playing on the climbing frame at nursery, dd1 was on top of the tunnel and her friend pulled her arm. dd1 is a very small child and her friend is a lot bigger and stronger. i wont tell her mum, as i know her mum will feel really guilty.

OP posts:

Twink · 09/12/2004 22:44

Misdee, don't feel silly, my parents were equally concerned the first time it happened to me & raced me off to see a doctor asap.

I used to get it fairly often when I was a pre-schooler - often trying to escape from holding a grown-up's hand but in allsorts of play incidents too.

I still get it occasionally, esp if I've been carrying heavy shopping for a long time but can usually put the joint back myself, it hurts to do now but is short lived. If it's a bad pull, dh has to do it because I can't physically pull & twist hard enough away from my body.

MistltAeroAndWine · 09/12/2004 23:03

Yes Misdee - you did the right thing. This happened to one of the children in my nursery while I worked there and it happened while I was holding on to her hand going down the stairs!!! She was forever swinging on her parents arms with one arm and on the way downstairs on this particular day, she decided to do it again, only my other arm was occupied carrying another child when she decided to swing! Result, she pulled her elbow and we took her to hospital and I felt terrible for ages, but if I'd let go of her, she'd have fallen down the stairs. She was fine and no-one blamed me except for myself, but it could have happened to anyone holding her hand - swinging was just something she liked to do.
I'm still in contact with the family and she's now eight! Needless to say, my own children do not swing off anyone's arms!!

KateandtheElves · 09/12/2004 23:25

You did exactly the right thing taking her to the hospital.

My oldest dislocated her elbow completely earlier this year. And it wasn't from swinging or having her arm pulled. She was climbing on the counter in the bathroom and fell onto the ceramic tile. She must have fallen very funnily to do that to herself.

She couldn't move it and it started turning funny colours. I was ready to drive straight to the hospital. It was my SIL who said why don't you just ring her doctor first and see what he says, which I did. Apparantly the pain from a dislocated elbow gets transferred to the wrist, which was what was hurting her. The doctor wasn't sure, so sent her for an X-ray, but when it turned out it wasn't broken he knew for sure what it was.

As he was explaining to me what had happened it slowly dawned on me what he was going to have to do. He was talking all upbeat for her sake, but he was giving me a look that made it clear to me what was going to happen. So she sat on my lap, the doctor told me to look away, and I guess he pulled her arm and manipulated the elbow back into it's socket. Of course she screamed, but it was like magic and all of a sudden it was as good as new and she could move it perfectly with no pain.

No need to feel silly at all misdee, and I'm glad she's OK.

Wallace · 10/12/2004 10:12

This happens to dd (3) every couple of months - usually caused by ds pulling her arm! We now leave it 24 hours before taking her to the doctor. We have only been to the doctor once and even that time she started moving it just before she was seen. It pops back in by itself after a while.

serenity · 12/12/2004 23:00

Some children are more prone to getting pulled elbows than others. Both my brother and me used to get them on a regular basis, until our arm muscles strengthened enough to compensate for having slightly crappy joints.

It doesn't take a lot to pull them out either, DS1 was constantly in and out of A&E between the ages of 1 and around 4. The most inexplicable incident was when I was sitting on the sofa, he put his hands on my knees, and I put my hands over his. I didn't hold his hands in any way, but when he pulled away he still managed to pull his elbow out again.

We were advised by the specialist to always go to A&E, just so they could keep an eye on how often it was occurring. Luckily he's grown out of it now, although I still get a bit paranoid about him hanging by his arms etc Luckily neither DS2 or DD have inherited the problem.

Anyway, just to say that if this happens to your child at school etc, it might not be because another child was being excessively rough IYSWIM

Original poster

misdee · 12/12/2004 23:12

dd1 is fine now. we missed her clas singing xmas songs thho, which is a shame, and i missed her xmas fayre as well.

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