Broken bones always need professional attention, but there's action you can take immediately to help the casualty.
Because children tend to put their arms out as they fall, arms, elbows and wrists are where breaks tend to occur.
Symptoms
Intense pain
Inability to use the limb
Bruising or deformity at site of the break
Actions - broken arm
Sit child down
Ask them to support injured arm with other hand
Put a pad between arm and chest
Put injured arm in a sling
Place a broad-fold bandage over sling and around arm and chest
Take child to hospital
Actions - broken leg
Lay child down and support leg at ankle and knee joints - by hand if an ambulance is expected soon, or on a chair if not
Steady injured leg with padding
Put rolled-up blankets outside injured limb and between legs
Keep child warm
Call 999
This article was reviewed by the British Red Cross in December 2009.
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