Monday, January 9, 2012

4 Things to Know About a Boxing Rib Fracture


1. Boxing Can Lead to a Bone Fracture
A boxer exposes his body to severe impact and can sustain injuries as a result. Well developed abdominal muscles can absorb most of the impact a boxer suffers when taking a punch, and strong bones can withstand stronger impacts than those that lack adequate levels of calcium. However, when a fighter suffers a broken rib during a fight, he may endure pain in the chest, bruising or inflammation in the area of the break, painful breathing and tenderness to the touch at the site of the break. Boxers who fracture a rib should refrain from participating in any strenuous activity, especially boxing, for the one to two months it takes to heal an acute rib fracture completely. Rest is recommended until all pain associated with the injury passes.
2. The Right Bone Fracture Can Lead to Complications
Rib fractures can cause complications with breathing and lead to pneumonia. When pneumonia bacteria in healthy people spread due to a weakened immune system caused by suffering the injury, the air sacs in the lungs sustain damage. Your physician may suggest that you wear a binding apparatus around your chest for protection of the broken rib as it heals. If you wear this binder, you need to ensure that you take deep breaths often to keep the lungs working properly and avoid the spread of the bacteria that can cause pneumonia.
3. Pain Management Can Be Pretty Easy
You can reduce the pain and inflammation of an acute rib fracture with the use of over-the-counter medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen or acetaminophen. For more intense pain, your physician may administer a nerve block containing an anesthetic that eases pain by essentially numbing the nerves localized in the area of the rib fracture.
4. Pain Meds Might Not Be Enough
Boxers may require hospitalization after suffering a rib fracture, especially if the broken bone affects organs located near the site of the injury. Your physician can manage severe pain associated with these types of injuries with an epidural. In this procedure, your physician administers an anesthetic into your back near the spinal cord to effectively numb the nerves in the entire torso.

 
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