1 Year Old with Broken Collar Bone and Fractured Skull

Hi A. - It is nerveracking, I know. My son broke his collar bone when he just turned 2. There is not really anything to do other than to keep it close to the body in a sling. Did the dr. tell you that it is the only bone in the body that heals on its own? My son was better in about 2 -3 weeks. As for the skull fracture, I can't speak for that, but I did want to tell you about his broken collar bone. By the way, he aslo broke his collar bone, the other one, at birth coming through the canal, so he has had them both broken now.....
Good luck

similar experience I was walking upstairs behind my niece who was 20months old my sock caught on a nail and i laneded on her. She got a broken collarbone from it.again it was found after her nap.. she was still whiny...It was almost naptime when this happend.. I still wish it hadn't happend. It isn't like i did it on purpose and niether did Your hubby. You can't fix what you don't know is broken, but now you know you took care of it, let it go...

A.,
I am so sorry to hear about your daughter. I know how upset the both of you must be. But you cannot blame yourselves it was a mistake that stupid sidewalk chalk! But I fell down the stairs with my 1 year old in my arms but thank God he was totally fine in every way but I hurt myself pretty good. He stayed in my arms nice and tight I fell on my ankle and butt. So he was protected well but it scared the heck out of me. But now reading all these posts I guess you really have to watch your kids well after a fall! I never even thought to keep a better watch on him but he like I said was not hurt (that I knew of). But your daughter will be fine and I will pray for her. Rest up all of you and just know God is good and kids heal quick. God bless.

I'm so sorry to hear about your little one's injury, that must have been very scary. I had a friend with a 4 month old who fractured her skull (falling off the changing table) and another with a 11 month old who broke her collarbone (they're not sure how, happened at daycare, they think). The fractured skull family was told it would heal up on it's own, it did and they've had no further problems. The collarbone girl was supposed to wear a sling, but she would get very distressed when they tried to put it on her. They ended up modifying some of her long-sleeved shirts with a safety pin connecting the sleeve to her other shoulder and she was ok with that. They only had to do this for a week. Hopefully your little one will be all better soon!
-L.

A., my husband tripped over a broom that had fallen across our kitchen opening holding our middle son who was probably 9 months old at the time. I was out of town at the time and didn't find out until they returned from the ER. Thankfully, he was okay but kept him for a few hours for observation.

You can't keep asking yourself how it happened. You just need to be proactive and ask what you can do for your daughter and help her make a full recovery. Ask what, if any, the side effects will be. Most of all, don't blame your husband. I'm sure he feels guilty enough as is. If he needs to talk to someone, make sure he does. It was an accident. I'm always telling my kids that it's called an accident for a reason, otherwise it would be called an "on purpose".

I wish your daughter an easy recovery and for your family an easy recovery as well.

Can only help with the fractured collar bone.My now 10 year old had a difficult birth that resulted in a fractured collar bone.There was little treatment as the thought at the time was that it would mend itself.I don't know if this is still the case but I would guess it depends on how serious the fracture is.My one piece of advice is that once all injuries are healed bring your daughter to a good cranio osteopath.My son had difficulty with his sleep patterns because he tensed his shoulders as a result of the injury.The cranio osteopathy worked wonders and had him back on track in no time.It is also wonderful for colic.Good Luck to you and your little one.

Fractured collar bones are not all that unusual in kids of that age under the circumstances you describe. It is unusual not to see external signs of it, like bruising or misshappen collar bone under the skin. As for the skull fracture, how scary, but how significant a fracture is it, hairline? crack along the suture line? I think just for your piece of mind, I'd discuss with your pediatrician her bone density, which they can tell to some degree from the xray. If there is any question about it, see a pediatric ortho specialist to make sure there is no underlying condition that might make her more prone to fracture. Children in general tend to heal pretty fast. Skull fracture is such a scary thing to hear, but there are lots of degrees of fracture, I'd ask if they felt she had a concussion or a contusion on the brain, perhaps they've already told you that. I think as a Mom I'd feel most comfortable if they did a follow up CT scan in a few weeks to be sure there are no complicating factors. Meanwhile, try not to riddle yourself with guilt, I know as a parent that's really hard, but accidents do happen!

Hi A.,
My four year old broke his collar bone when he was 11 months; crawled off the changing table. After the scare wore off, we thought he was fine. But after a day or so, he still wouldn't put weight on that arm when crawling. So, to the dr we went. He diagnosed it as a fracture, and told us that there was nothing to do for it. Tylenol for pain, but no sling, no restrictions. When he felt better he started moving around better. He's doing great now and you can't even find the bump in the bone where it broke.
It sounds like they did some very thorough tests/scans of her head. Ask your pediatrician if s/he'd be willing to review the results with you. Sometimes being told that everything is fine, just isn't enough information.
Good Luck!

Many years ago when my nephew was a toddler, he fell down the basement stairs - someone forgot to close the door. He cried a bit and then seemed fine until his head swelled. His parents brought him to the emergency room - fractured skull. He had to wear a bike helmet for a while until it was healed. He's now in college and doing fine.

Most of the time, these things will heal up quicker then in adults with no effects later. Just pay close attention to what the doctor say and do it. Take notes at the office, so you do not forget.

I am so sorry for your husband and how he must feel. Even times when we bump their little heads while getting into the car seat, makes me feel terrible...or they trip over us....so many things can happen. I will pray for your little girl.

This must be tough for you. Last summer my 4 year old nephew was run over by a 4 wheeler. He had a fractured skull, 150 stitches in his leg, a broken arm, and cuts and bruises everyway. The first few days we were terrified that he was going to have brain damage and permanent issues. Well I'm happy to say he is better than ever. It was tougher on my sister and our family than on him. To date we still rush to his side at every bump or fall no matter how small. My sister had a lot of anxiety about bringing him back to daycare and allowing him to get back to normal everyday play. It will probably take you and your husband a while to get over this, but remember how resilient children are. She is sure to be back to normal in no time. Try to relax and remember it's ok to be a little extra cautious and protective of her over the next few months.

My son broke his collar bone when he was 2 - also not a mark on him, no bruises. He wore a sling for a few weeks, he favored that arm for about a week. After that the difficult part was a few weeks of holding him back from climbing and running so he wouldn't re-injure it.