Ortho resources

[chromuffin]

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Any suggestions? I can't seem to find any good resources that will prepare me for the likes of knowing a second metatarsal hairline fracture requires rest & analgesics whereas a fifth metatarsal hairline fracture requires casting. Sure I can make sense of it, but I'd naturally assume both would require casting due to weight bearing.

 

[jet616]

Handbook of fractures or orthobullets are gold.

In general, fractures need stability and biology in order to mend.

In terms of stability, the 2nd is way more inherently stable than the 5th. If you grab your 2nd MT and wiggle it around and then grab your 5th MT and wiggle it around you'll find that there is a lot more movement in the 5th MT. You can imagine then that the 5th MT will see a lot more movement when you walk.

In terms of biology, there is an area at the base of the 5th MT that has tenuous blood flow which leads to tenuous healing. If you have a Jone's fracture, you'll need to immobilize and keep weight off of it to stabilize in order to give it the best chance of healing without surgery.

Hope that helps.