Fractured Radius/Ulna (Toy Breed)

"Shasta", a 3-year old female Chihuahua mix, was presented with an injury to the right forelimb. The pet had been dropped by a child and the limb appeared broken between the elbow and the carpus (wrist). A padded bandage was applied until radiographs could be taken.

This is one of the more serious types of fractures of small dogs. Both bones of the forelimb (radius and ulna) were completely fractured and there was sufficient movement of the bone fragments so that the ends of the bones were not in close proximity to each other. If only one of the bones were broken, it might be possible to achieve healing through the application of an external cast. When both bones are broken, enough stability cannot be achieved with a cast and the bones may fail to heal, resulting in a "non-union". The best procedure in a case like this is surgical internal fixation: a stainless steel pin in placed in the interior of one or both of the broken bones to keep them in near perfect alignment.

The above radiographs were taken immediately after surgical reduction of the fracture. The bones of this dog are so small that there is room only for a very small pin in the radius. The pin can just barely be seen on the left radiograph. Note the gap in the bone even though in good alignment, there still is a small amount of separation. With the bones now in alignment, an external fiberglass cast is applied. The pin will not be removed, but remain buried in the healed bone indefinitely.

The radiograph was taken after 8 weeks of healing. The cast was checked on a weekly basis and had to be re-applied once. The healing fracture felt stable, but had not completely healed radiographically. The image on the right shows the leg after cast removal. A support bandage was applied for one more week. "Sasha" is now walking normally on the limb.