The Under Cover Cast Blog

How do you know if you or your child has a bone fracture? If you see a bone actually protruding through the skin, you can be quite certain you’re dealing with a broken bone. These types of injuries are known as open fractures or compound fractures and require immediate medical attention. Since the skin is disrupted there is a great risk of infection and hence open fractures are surgically cleaned and fractures stabilized before a cast is applied.

Closed fractures, on the other hand, are much less obvious to the eye. There are no bones protruding from the skin and the term ‘bone fracture’ is used to indicate either a crack or break in the bone. Since you may have sustained a severe injury (with damage to tendons, joints, and ligaments) without actually breaking anything, the only way to know for sure if your bone is broken is via an X-Ray.

Types of Fractures

While fractured arms and fractured legs are the most well-known types of orthopedic injuries, broken toes, broken fingers, broken ankles, and stress fractures are also common.

In addition to open fractures and closed fractures, there are in fact a number of different types of fractures, including:

• Stress Fracture (small cracks in the bone caused by overuse)
• Simple Fracture (bone is broken in only one place)
• Comminuted Fracture (broken bone has several bone fragments)
• Undisplaced Fracture (broken bone pieces are aligned)
• Displaced Fracture (broken bone pieces are not aligned)
• Transverse Fracture (fracture is located at a right angle to the long axis of the bone)
• Greenstick Fracture (fracture is located on one side of the bone, causing the other side of the bone to bend)

Signs and Symptoms of a Fracture

If you suspect that you or your child has a fractured bone, seek emergency medical care immediately. Common signs and symptoms of a broken bone include:

• Bone has pierced the skin and is sticking out
• Misshapen or abnormal position of the affected limb
• Severe pain and/or tenderness
• Swelling
• Bruising or bleeding
• Numbness and tingling
• Limited mobility
• Unable to move the affected limb
• Treatment for Fractured Bones

The treatment you will receive depends on the type of fracture sustained and the specific bones involved. Treatments for fractures include:

• Application of a splint to help mobilize bones
• Application of a plaster cast until initial swelling goes down
• Application of a water-resistant fiberglass cast to keep bones from moving as they heal
• External Fixation, wherein pins, plates, or screws are used to set the bone in place
• and are later removed once the bone has healed
• Internal Fixation, wherein screws, wires, or metal rods are inserted via a surgical procedure to keep bone fragments together

Cast Care

To help ensure that your fractured arm or fractured leg heal properly and in the shortest amount of time, protect your cast by investing in high-quality cast cover. Also known as a cast protector, today’s cast covers come in wide range of styles and colors and are especially designed to help keep your cast dry in the bath, shower, and even the swimming pool.

Image courtesy of Free Digital Photo

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If your cast is casting a damper on your sense of fashion, it’s time to learn all about cast decoration and what you can do to give your cast a new look and a flash of flair. From designer cast covers to cast tattoos to cast protectors in every color under the rainbow, orthopedic function and fashion are coming together like never before.

With sports athletes, personal trainers, and celebrities such as Kelly Ripa (Live with Kelly and Michael) publicly singing the praises of their custom casts and designer-colored crutches, modern cast covers are making a fashion statement of their own in addition to making the headlines. Fashion-forward cast covers are trendy rather than tacky, and include designs which glitter, glow, feature vibrant prints and patterns, and which can be hand-picked to match your favorite outfits.

Traditionally, casts and cast covers weren't always this pretty. The first orthopedic casts were made from cotton bandages soaked in a white plaster called Plaster of Paris. Drying and hardening to form a protective layer around the fractured bones, plaster casts (which are sometimes still used today) are notoriously heavy and bulky looking. Newer fiberglass casts are stronger, lighter, and cooler than their plaster counterparts. However, the popular white color lacks personality and any sense of pizzazz. (Many fiberglass casts come in cool colors.)

Revolutionizing the realm of orthopedic healing and making the process of mending broken bones easier to bear - and a lot more fun - are innovative products such as personalized cast protectors, fabric arm and leg cast covers, and cast tattoos. Easy to apply with a little bit of heat, cast tattoos work much like any other adhesive decal and are designed to transform casts from clumsy to cool and from drab to dapper or divine.

When it comes to protecting your cast, however, high fashion is no substitute for high quality. An effective cast protector should offer cast wearers a customized fit, a water-tight seal to prevent casts from getting wet, should be made from a durable material that  provides fractured bones and limbs the support they need to heal, and should easily stretch over a cast for easy application and removal.

The strongest cast protectors are 100% waterproof when fully submerged, allowing cast wearers to bathe, shower, swim, go to the beach, and enjoy a wide range of sports and activities without fear of their cast getting wet. This is an especially important feature in cast covers for kids, who no longer have to miss out on the fun-in-the-sun as their broken limbs or sprained ankles heal.

Whether you decorate your cast to give it a new-fangled look, opt for a cool cast tattoo, or go whimsical with some wild cast cover colors, cast fashion is a great way to make a statement and to add some fun and good cheer to your cast wearing experience.

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Keeping Your Cast Dry

Keeping your cast dry is an essential part of cast care and more importantly of your healing process. Yet the fact is that wearing a cast is a nuisance – and trying to shower or bathe with a cast is an even greater hurdle. Moreover, with the arrival of summer, thousands of cast wearers – and especially children with a cast – are dying to dive into the water, go to the beach or pool, and not miss out on the fun in the sun.

Fortunately, there are a number of effective ways to protect casts from water and from the damage a wet cast can cause. By learning about cast care and the type of cast or splint you are wearing, you’ll be able to face the challenges of keeping your cast dry in the shower, bathtub, and swimming pool.

Wet Casts

 If you have a fractured arm or leg, you are likely wearing a cast or a splint. Casts keep your bones from moving and support your limbs while they heal. One of the first rules of thumb any doctor will tell you is to keep your cast dry. A wet cast can lose its shape and not be able to offer your broken bones the support they need. Moreover, if a cast’s cotton lining gets wet, it can lead to a rash or infection inside the cast.

Keeping Plaster Casts Dry

 In the first days after your injury, some doctors will apply a plaster cast. Made from a thick paste of white powder and water, plaster casts can be easily fitted around swelling and are typically heavy and bulky. Since plaster casts will dissolve if they get wet, it’s especially important to keep your plaster cast dry and invest in a waterproof cast protector that allows you to shower and bathe safely.

Water-Resistance Fiberglass Casts

 Once your swelling has gone down, your plaster cast will likely be replaced by a fiberglass cast, which is stronger, lighter, and cooler. Fiberglass casts are water resistant on the outside but not on the inside.

Tips on Keeping Your Cast Dry

 Doctors are adamant about keeping casts dry. Here are some tips on how to keep your arm cast, leg cast, splint, or bandage dry so that your limbs heal and your skin stays dry and comfortable.

•  One often-attempted but NOT recommended idea for keeping your cast dry is to simply hold your cast out of harm’s way. Using this method, water will most certainly drip down your arm or leg, soaking and damaging the cast padding in the process.

• Another unfortunately popular but NOT recommended method is to tie a garbage bag around your cast. As anyone who has tried this can tell you, this approach is both a messy nuisance AND ineffective!

• Invest in a high quality cast sleeve, cast cover, or cast protector which has a 100% watertight seal and which is designed for bathing, showering, and/or swimming. The strongest and most effective cast protectors allow you to fully submerge in water without fear of getting your cast, bandage, or splint wet.

• Remember: for over 25 years, DryCast has proven itself as the ONLY reliable answer for your cast protecting needs!

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