Broken Collar bone - seeking advice

[Chuck100]

Hello all,

It's been a while sine I last posted, but I'm now back in Blighty and loving my new R6 (had to say goodbye to my beloved NSR125 when I returned home).

Was wondering if I might be able to canvas your opinions on something...

My brother was involved in a bike accident a couple of weeks ago and broke his collar bone (clavicle) as a result. It's quite a severe break (there's a very large lump) and his shoulder is depressed about 1.5 inches into his chest. This is very obvious when you look at him (his left shoulder is about 1.5 inches closer to his neck than his right).

Now, he's been offered the opportunity to have some surgery to correct this by re-aligning the bone and screwing a plate over the top.

As far as I can tell, it's pretty unusual to have surgery in the case of a clavicle fracture and in most instances the bone is just left to heal. This operation would (so the doctors say) be purely cosmetic. Basically he needs to decide whether he'd rather have a compacted shoulder and bump, or a 3 inch scar and smaller bump and a relatively normal shoulder position. Plus there's also the usual risks involved with having invasive surgery.

I have no experience of this but really want to help him come to the best decision. If any of you have had a similar injury, or know someone who has, I would be really grateful if you could pass on any suggestions or opinions... particularly with regard to the range of motion of the arm/shoulder in both cases of having surgery and not having surgery.

He needs to make a decision fairly soon, so all advice would be much appreciated.

Many thanks in advance,

Chuck.
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[r1_lad]

Personally i'd go with the plate and get it done.

He might regret not getting it done later on in life.
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RS50 -> RS125 -> GSXR600 SRAD -> 02 R1 -> Speed Triple 1050 -> Ducati Streetfighter 1099 -> DRZ400 Superetard

[MarJay]

PM dusty, he's had the exact same injury by the sound of it. They let his heal and he has a lump on his clavicle etc... but his posture seems OK.

Like I said, PM him.
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[Tyral]

Hey Chuck100.

I came off 4 weeks ago and snapped my collarbone. Looked quite nasty on the X ray. One bone was overlapping the other.

It seems to have healed reasonably ok in my case. Yeah, I've got a large lump thats viewable even from a distance (over an inch wide compared to the cm it was before) .I've been told that the calcuim actually does slightly go away during years, but not totally. And no, my posture is not bad.

What your brother has to decide is very hard. I was thinking the same thing when the doctors said mine would have a chance of healing (what if it heals wrong? get it corrected with a scar, or have a massive lump)

Chicks dig scars . If its really that bad on his posture, i'd get it sorted. I wouldn't want my shoulder to be deformed, rather than have a little scar that'll fade slightly overtime.

[stinkwheel]

If it has changed the position of his shoulder joint, I would get it sorted, who knows what effect this may have on the joint long-term with regard to arthritis.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[N_Tart]

Hospitals don't recommend unnecessary operations so they may be thinking of his future. Not doing something now could make things worse later on in life.

[phill.c]

doctors know best mate, personally i would go for it a scare is better than a fooked shoulder.

[Scratchy]

I broke my collar bone about 6 years ago and did not have surgery. Yes, there is a 'step' in the bone now, but it is not that noticable (until you touch it) and my posture is normal.
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Don't do as I do, do as I say!

[Gazdaman]

I know that knakered joints aren't worth the hastle, my knees don't fully straighten, if I was offered the chance to correct it then I'd sure as hell take it.

personally I'd suggest he had the op, but at the end of the day it's his choice.

Gaz

[jonboy]

Just got to weigh up the risks and benfits mate:
Operation pros
Better cosmetically
Possibly better function if very malaligned. In certain circumstances (eg a soldier using heavy rucsacs rubbing on shoulder) this can be a major issue.
Heals quicker usually
Joint wear concerns very very unlikely.
Chicks dig scars
In certain circumstances the bone may not heal without an operation leading to permanent mobility of the fracture site.

Operation cons
Risk of infection
Tiny risk of damage to arm blood supply
Have to have an operation!

Speaking from experience, NHS doctors would be extremely reluctant to operate on a broken collarbone unless there was a very good reason, and as such I would be loath to persuade him not to have one.
All doctors are now obliged to fully explain the risks and benefits of an operation, this is the basis of 'informed consent'. However in practice it often comes down to 'just sign this form and we'll get on with it.'
If you're brother isn't sure he should go back to fracture clinic and ask them to explain things in more detail, which they are obliged to do.
HTH.