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General health information

Broken foot

A broken foot means one of the bones in the foot is cracked or broken. Pain, swelling, bruising and difficulty putting weight on it are common, but you can still walk with some fractures. Protect the foot, never straighten a foot that is out of position yourself, and have a suspected fracture medically assessed.

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  • A broken foot may affect a toe bone, metatarsal, tarsal bone or heel bone. Even a small crack caused by overuse is a fracture.
  • Pain, swelling and difficulty walking can occur with a fracture, but also with bruising or a severe sprain. The difference is not always visible from the outside.
  • Walk on the foot as little as possible until the problem is clear. Protect it and remove a shoe carefully only if this is possible without pulling or twisting.
  • A foot that is out of position, an open wound, pale or cold toes, loss of sensation or rapidly increasing pain needs prompt medical assessment.
  • Never realign bones yourself. Incorrect manipulation may further damage nerves, blood vessels, skin and joints.

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Further reading

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Sprained ankleIn an ankle sprain, one or more ankle ligaments stretch or tear when the foot unexpectedly rolls. Pain, swelling and bruising are common, but a fracture, tendon injury or dislocation may look similar. Protect the ankle and cool it briefly, build up weight-bearing and exercises in good time, and have severe pain, deformity or poor circulation assessed immediately.
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Broken wristA broken wrist usually involves the end of the radius, the forearm bone on the thumb side, sometimes together with other bones or ligaments. Pain, swelling, bruising and difficulty moving often follow a fall onto an outstretched hand. A wrist can be broken without an obvious change in shape. Remove rings, support the arm, do not straighten the wrist yourself and have the injury assessed the same day.
B
Broken vertebraA broken vertebra, one of the bones of the spine, may result from a serious accident, but also from osteoporosis after a small movement or fall. Some fractures are stable; others may threaten the spinal cord or nerves. Keep someone as still as possible after major trauma, and have new weakness, loss of sensation, breathing problems or loss of bladder or bowel control assessed immediately.