Hi, I Accidentally Closed Out My Question. I Fell And

Posted on Tue, 23 Apr 2019

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Tue, 23 Apr 2019 Answered on

Last reviewed on

Question : Hi, I accidentally closed out my question. I fell and injured my elbow/arm on Saturday. I had X-rays but they couldn't quite tell if it was broken. It is sore, which I am taking Advil for the pain, but super swollen still.
they wrapped it and gave me a sling, my question is how long do I keep it wrapped and in the sling at the same time? And how long am I supposed to keep it mobilized?

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Prasad J (7 minutes later)

Over the weekend I experienced additional swelling and pain, now to my bruised wrist and hand. I did remove the wrap and no longer iced the injury; is this why the swelling may have worsened instead of gone down? I have also discontinued taking Advil because I am told it may not be good to take it [past 10 days, but now I am in pain again and it swelled up quite bit.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Prasad J (28 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
you may have aggravated it...

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

You said you removed the wrap and may be mobilized the affected limb. This may have perhaps worsened it. If you have a copy of X-ray / reports, you may upload it here and let me look at it.

It would not be a good idea to remove wrap and mobilize the limb if the swelling is huge. You should continue taking antiinflammatory agents (advil) for 3-5 days atleast. Serattiopeptidase or chymotrypsin tablets are antiedema agents. You can check with treating doctor if he/she can prescribe it. It should also help in bringing down swelling.
Furthermore there is no harm in icing the area for a bit longer. It will help you recover faster.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need clarifications.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar