Heel bone is called as calcaneus and a fracture in it is caused only during big crashes and automobile accidents. This is considered as an injury that disables the person for a long time that prevents standing and walking.
Type of heel bone fractures
Stable fracture: In this case the broken bones will stay in place and alignment may not be necessary during the treatment. Healing will also be faster.
Displaced Fracture:
If the bones get displaced during the fracture then a surgical treatment is warranted to re-align the displaced bones.
Open Fracture:
These fractures are considered complicated and takes time for healing. In these fractures the muscles, tissues, ligaments and also the tendons get damaged.
Closed Fracture:
The outside skin may not get pierced in such kind of fractures but the surrounding tissues and ligaments would get damaged with dislocation of the fractured bones.
Comminuted Fractures:
If the bone gets shattered to more number of pieces then it would be more unstable and healing process is also very slow and complicated.
Non-Surgical Treatment:
If the broken pieces of bone are not displaced and remain in place then non-surgical treatment is opted for. Casting is the most common procedure or even other means for keeping the portion immobile for longer periods also might be tried. The healing time might take up to 8 weeks.
Surgical Treatment:
If it is a closed fracture then the doctor might put the patients feet in immobilised condition for a certain period till the swelling reduces on its own accord. This waiting increases the chances of success in surgical procedure. But if it is a open fracture the surgery will be recommended as soon as possible.
Internal fixation: In this type of surgery the broken pieces of bones are positioned in place and held tightly by pates and screws.
Percutaneous screw fixation: If the broken bone pieces are large then without a major surgery the bones could be pushed and placed in the respective positions by small incisions. Screws will be used to hold the bones in place.
