Tibia fracture: The lower leg in your body has two significant bones called the tibia and fibula. The tibia or shinbone is the longest and strongest among the two bones located between the knee and ankle. It is one of the common long bones in your body that gets fractured frequently. It bears most of your body weight, and it is an important bone that connects the knee joint and the ankle joint.

What Is a Tibia Bone Fracture?

Though the tibia bone is one of the strongest bones in your body, a typical high force can fracture the bone. A tibial shaft fracture happens when the bone breaks by any mean anywhere along the length of the bone. In cases, fibula, the smaller bone beside the tibia in your lower leg, might get fractured as well.

What are the types of tibial shaft fractures?

Tibia fracture types: These fractures are of different types and are classified based on the cause of the fracture and severity. If the bone cracked horizontally, i.e., across the bone, it might be called a transverse fracture, and if the crack is angled, it is termed as an oblique fracture. Proximal fractures happen when the upper tibia bone gets damaged.

Tibia fracture Classification: The major types of fractures of the tibia bone are:

• Stable fracture
• Displaced fracture
• Stress fracture
• Spiral fracture
• Comminuted fracture

Read – Bone Fracture Repair: Different Procedures & Healing Time

What Causes Tibia Bone Fracture?

Motor vehicle accidents are the most common cause of tibial shaft fractures. Other traumatic injuries, such as falls, also result in fractures. Sports or other activities that involve repeated impact can break your tibia bones. Contact sports injuries from football, rugby, etc. can damage your shinbone. Osteoporosis is a condition that makes your bones weak and prone to fractures.

What are the Symptoms of Tibia Fracture?

The symptoms of a fractured shinbone might include:

• Localized pain at the site of the fractured tibia
• Swelling
• Difficulty or inability to stand and walk
• bruising or discoloration by the fractured shinbone
• Loss of sensation in the foot
• Bone piercing out the skin in case of complex fracture
• Bone tenting appearance over the skin at the site of the fracture
• Leg deformity or instability

Can I walk after a fractured Tibia? 

Walking immediately after the fracture is not a good idea. It makes your fracture worse and might damage your surrounding muscles, ligaments, and blood vessels. Dr. Vasudeva Juvvadi, an Orthopedic surgeon in Hyderabad, says that you can regain the lost functions and walk like before after taking proper treatment.

How much time does a fractured tibia take to heal?

Tibia fracture healing time: Generally, the recovery time for this type of fracture is around three to six months, and in case of stress fractures, you can recover within eight weeks. However, the healing of tibia fracture varies according to the severity and type of fracture. The recovery can be faster if you follow the instruction of your doctor by taking the right steps.

If you have any questions associated with fractures – such as fracture exercises, surgery, tibia fracture surgery cost in Hyderabad, tibia fracture surgery cost in India, and tibia fracture recovery time – and any more such types of questions, contact Dr. Vasudeva

In addition to tibia fractures, if you are facing any bone problems, contact Dr. Vasudeva Juvvadi. He has more than ten years of experience in dealing with all types of fractures.