# Ethan Broke His Arm



## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Well after a wonderful weekend almost coming to an end, my son decides that he wants to try out my neighbours new jumping castle. (Neighbour owns his own Jumping Castle Company, so there is always castle inflated at their house).

So my wife walks over with him and he tries to out the castle with the rest of the neighbourhood. Everything goes well until my DW calls him, that it is time to stop and get ready for bath time. As he is coming out, he see an older kid(6) jump of the castle and onto the grass.... Ethan thought this was pretty cool; instead of the standard slide off with bum method he tries it. The jump went well but the landing not so good, He landed on his chest/side with his arm somehow trapped underneath him. Ethan gets up and walks for to my DW who was talking to the mother of another child who was there and says he would like to go home now holding is arm.

Ethan was very calm; however when DW and neighbour saw his arm the panic/shock started. (Ethan broke is left arm 1/2 way between his elbow and wrist) The arm instead of being straight was off on a 55 degree angle( luckly no bones were showing). My DW picks him up and carries back home yelling for me it get the car ready we are going to emerg. I thought something happened to wife







by the way things sounded. I saw carrying Ethan so I ran towards to get Ehtan thinking she was hurt. Ethan shows me his arm and says "I think I need a band-aid" I load him into the car and jump in the passenger seat because my DW already had the car in reverse. We made Emerg in about 3min thanks to DW driving abilities.

The med staff were great... we jumped the que; right in, and splinted his arm. After the X-Rays got forwarded to a specialist somewhere??? the MD's knew what and how to fix it. They managed to get is arm within a 10 degree bend and put on a expandable cast. A quick re-xray to ensure everthing is OK and back home we go. The x-ray showed both bones in is arm were in 2 pieces; sheared right off.

Ethan (4) was extremely brave... not a tear until the docs had to manipulate is arm into the proper position... When this was happening DW had to leave the room, and an experience I will never forget. The Doc told Ethan what he was doing and the pain would stop soon, and that it would really help if he was brave. Ethan stop the tears and focused on the X-Rays of his his broken arm. All he wanted was the x-ray picture to show his teacher tomorrow when he goes to school.

He is home in bed sleeping and everything is fine. Just before he went to bed he asked if he could play soccer tomorrow with his team. DW wife is also feeling better. Off to see the specialist on thurs to make sure everything is straight and true before the plaster cast is put on. There might be a possibility that his arm may have to be pinned into place.

Thanks for letting me download.

Thor


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## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

Thor 
Sorry to hear what happened to Ethan.
Sounds like you have one brave little boy and a tough one to boot 
Hope eveything goes well at the specialist on Thursday.
You have to kept us updated.

Don


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## 1stTimeAround (Sep 22, 2004)

I know the feeling Thor. My son at age 1 broke his arm the day we arrived on vacation at Hatteras, pretty close to 6 years ago. I am glad he is okay and it sounds like he handled it like a real trooper!

I hope everything heals well and that all is fine at the doctor's on Thursday.

I will give you a tip that helped my son. Introduce to him early on, after the plaster cast is put on, how they take the cast off. I did this with my son and it seemed to help when they actually fired up the circular saw to cut that puppy off.

Also, ask for a water-proof cast. My son had one of these so he was still able to get into the pool or play in the sprinkler (ie. didn't ruin his summer!!)!

Good luck

Jason


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## mswalt (Sep 14, 2004)

Thor,

Sorry to hear about your son. Tough little kid!

When my granddaughter was 4, her dad and I were putting together her new "fort" swingset in the back yard when we hear a plop and a scream. We turn around and see her lying on the ground under the swings. She thought she'd try the monkey bars but didn't know quite how to do them. She slipped off and hurt her arm. A few minutes later at the hospital, we foind out it, too, was broken.

Arm in cast for next several weks (the rest of the summer). Doctor said "No" to swimming cast; had to wrap it in a big piece of plastic to let her play in the "little" pool while the rest of us went in the "big" pool.

Arm's fine now. She's now almost 7 and doing cartwheels and gymnastics. Kids are pretty resilient.

Mark


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

Glad to hear he is doing better. Kids are tough. Must have been the weekend for injuries. My 8 yr old took a nasty fall off her bike at the campground this week and she s all scraped up but ok.

John


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## Katrina (Dec 16, 2004)

My 4 year old daughter had pretty much the same break last October.
The water proof cast is worth it's weight in gold.
The saw removing the cast did seem to scare her pretty well, even after the pep talks before hand.
Lemme know if you have any questions.


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Thor,

Glad the little guy is ok. Multiple breaks like that can be quite tricky sometimes, so good luck with the orthopedist on Thursday. Hopefully, things will be fine, due to his age, and he won't need pins.

My DW would have been a wreck, and most likely would not have been able to stay in the room either.

Tim


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Glad he's going to be alright. When we've had things happen like that to our girls, I'd trade places with them in a heartbeat.

Mike


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## bmxmom (Jun 3, 2005)

Thor,

I hope Ethan feels better soon. He will be up and running around in no time.

Anne


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

The good thing about kids is they heal quick from broken bones.

I broke my leg a few years ago playing Hockey and it was just before Christmas. When I had the cast put on I had them wrap it in Christmas colors, striped red and green. Ask Ethan if he wants a special color and see what you can do to have some fun with it.


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## rennerbee (Jul 25, 2004)

Wow, you sure do have a brave son there! I don't know that I as an adult could have handled that as well as he did. Sounds like he is truely a trooper. Hope everything goes well with the specialist. Be sure to tell Ethan how brave and awesome we all think he is! action


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## cookie9933 (Feb 26, 2005)

Sorry to hear the tale of Ethan's arm. Tough on him and Mom and Dad. He sure is a brave little fella. Trust that he will be healed up just fine in a month or so. I waited until I was 10 to break my arm, but not both bones in 2 pieces.

These things remind us that we are all fragile, but for a parent we hate to have our kids hurt. Good luck to you all.

Bill


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## Walker Camping Co. (May 17, 2005)

Having broke my arm 4x's, I know what he was going through. He sounds like a very brave little guy. Hope he is feeling better!

JW


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

4 times wow, Are you Tim the tool man?


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## Reverie (Aug 9, 2004)

I sure am glad to hear your son is doing better. I can't imagine the pain he was in but I can certainly imagine the feeling you must have had rushing to the ER. Sometimes bad things lead to better things. Ethan may have some nasty breaks but now he has some bragging items for show and tell. When I was 10 I might have made that trade!

I hope he wants to jump on the castle again. My kids love those things. We stand there and watch them the whole time but it sure is easy for the kids to bypass all of the safety stuff.

I hope everything goes well in his healing.

Reverie


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## dmbcfd (Sep 8, 2004)

Sorry to read about the little guy's accident. I hope he feels better soon. GET THE WATERPROOF CAST, if you can. Summer has just started and the pain of falling will be nothing compared to the pain of being left out of the fun. He'll be used to the cast before you leave for Cape Cod. Good luck.

Steve


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Everyone

Thanks for the overwhelming response. I read Ethan the entire thread tonight. Ethan's calls the Outbackers' the "camping computer people". He is doing much better. Missed school today, the little guy did not get up until just after 9:00am. He spent most of the day on the couch watching tv. By 3:30 he decide he wanted to go out a play (I think the codeine finally wore off) Got him dressed and out he went. 1st thing he wanted to do is to make sure he still could ride his peddle go-cart.







After supper he wanted to go back on the jumping castle







The answer was no. Next he wanted to go swimming... It is simply amazing how fast little kids bounce back. ... and of coarse is his typical male (sorry for the stereotype) he is definitely working his broken arm to his advantage.









I will let everyone know how thurs results turn out.

Thanks again









Thor


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Sitting here with Timmy eating breakfast, (he's home from school today, as he yacked all over the cafeteria yesterday). I just told him what happened to Ethan, and wanted me to forward to Ethan a get well wish.

Timmy does want to know "How can he steer with one hand?"

Tim


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## luv2rv (Jun 21, 2004)

Thor, sorry to hear about Ethan's mishap. Wish him well.

Wayne


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## Bubba-j (Feb 19, 2005)

Sorry to hear that about your little guy. Kids are remarkable; their healing abilities are superior and before long he'll be out wanting to Castle again! As a parent I can relate to your concerns and quick reactions.

Ah, kids are great! If I was younger we'd have more. Shoot, maybe we will anyway.

Tell him of all the folks who are wishing him to feel better.


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## our2girls (Jan 26, 2005)

I hope your son is A-OK...... he's in my thoughts...

I broke my arm on July 3, 1975.....it was a compound fracture of the left arm, with the ulna or radius bone, I don't remember which, protruding through my skin. I was 9 years old at the time, and still remember it to this day (still have the scar!!).

Kids are amazing little people with super human healing powers, I'm sure little Ethan will be just fine!! Tell him I'm rootin' for the little guy!!!! I've witnessed my litttle girls fall and get up thinking " Man, if that was my fat 39 year old butt, I'd be out of commission for a month!"

Take care, he will be healed in no time !!

Mike


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## Campfire Squad (Nov 15, 2004)

Sorry to hear about Ethan's arm! Hope he has a speedy recovery. Sounds like he was quite a trooper.

David.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Tim

Ethan drives his car like everyone else. One hand on the steering wheel and his broken arm rests in his lap. It has not slowed him down.









Update:

We saw the specialist today and it is not the best news. Tomorrow Ethan will be in the hospital to have his arm straightened. They are going to put him under general and I guess the pull and twist until they get it straight. If this does not work, the arm will be pinned and platted.







The specialist also noticed that his wrist has been separated but feels this should heal on its own.







He told us that if this break were to occur in an adult it would be surgery for sure. They are pretty optimistic that they will be able to straighten it without surgery







. He is scheduled to go in hospital at 12:30 and he should be released around 4:30.

Ethan was upset because was not able to get a cast on and go to school tomorrow. All he wants is that everyone to sign his cast.









I will keep let everyone know how it goes tomorrow. My DW and I have our fingers crossed.

Thor


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Keep us posted Thor, hope all turns out well.

Will be thinking of Ethan tomorrow.

Mike


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## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

Yes we will be thinking of Ethan tomorrow.
Hope everything go well, Good Luck!!
Don & Peg
And Kids


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

We're all thinking about him here in CT too. Keep us posted.

Tim


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## rennerbee (Jul 25, 2004)

I'll be thinking of little Ethan too. I can't imagine how you all are feeling. I would prob be a wreck! In fact, when Dani was little, she had to go under general just to have a tooth pulled. I remember being so upset about it and then hearing a chaplin going around to the other parents/kids in pre-op and I overheard 1 parent saying that their child was going in for a liver surgery of some sort--I then realized how lucky I was for the silly little tooth problem. Be glad that, although this is major, that it isn't life threatening. I'd still be nervous though. It's a parents way I guess.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Ethan's update.

1st of all, a trip to the Hospital Surgury area is really humbling. You quickly realize how lucky you are to have your health and how minor a broken arm is.

The hospital staff were great and treated Ethan like a King. The Surgen explain to us what will happen and what can go wrong so we fully understand.

I did have a laugh just prior to Ethan walking to surgery. You have to picture a 4 year old wearing a hospital gown with only the top tie down up because the arm had to be out. We were waiting in the area when we has called to the O.R The nurse gives Ethan a hair net to wear and holds his hand while walking to the surgery room. So now you see a the backside of a 4 year old holding the hand of a nurse wearing a hair net and sandles. Has he is walking you see his underwear a big red Tonka truck. All the people in the waiting area said "now that is a Kodak moment".

Everything went very well, no pins or plates for now and next thurs with another x-ray we will have conformation that no pins will be required. sunny Ethan will have a full cast one for 4 weeks followed by a smaller cast for another 3-4 weeks. Poor kid...the entire summer with a cast on







but a small price to pay to have your health and happiness









Again from the bottom of our hearts we like to thank everyone for their support because it does make a difference. The thread will be printed and kept in his memory box.

Thor and family


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## dougdogs (Jul 31, 2004)

Great news Thor









Sounds like he has been a real trooper through all this


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## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Glad everything is working out well. Good luck next week for the followup. Did they at least use a water proof cast?

Tim


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## Katrina (Dec 16, 2004)

Glad to hear he's doing well.
Keep us posted.


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## rennerbee (Jul 25, 2004)

I'm so glad all went well! And what a Kodak moment that had to have been for sure! Again, he is a very brave kid!


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## Campfire Squad (Nov 15, 2004)

Thor

Was sad to hear Ethan had a mishap; I'm impressed, though, by how well a child copes. I'm glad things went well for all of you at the hospital and will keep all of you in my thoughts. ( I hope he's still able to do arts and crafts !!!!)

Amy action


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## Katrina (Dec 16, 2004)

4 year old Abbey sends her best wishes to Ethan.

This message was typed by daddy(Jim) while Abbey dictated.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Back from the fracture clinic today. Good News and not do good news.

The good news that the arm is still straight but not healing as well as it should. The possibility of pins and plating are still there. Next week we have to go again for another check. The full arm cast which was to be replaced by a smaller cast will now have to stay







This means Ethan will be in a full cast for our 2 week camping trip to Cape Cod. Any good suggestions how to keep the sand out








Also the specialist did not want to put on a swimming cast. It was not recommended for this type of fracture.









The Doc also told us that Ethan was not to play soccer and to keep is arm as stable as possible. So for at least the next 6 weeks Ethan will dress in uniform but watch from the sidelines cheering his team. This will break his heart because he loves soccer.

Thor


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Sand is a really big problem. Very hard to keep out and impossible to remove once it is in.

The only thing I can suggest is multiple layers. Stuff the openings with gauss then tape it all in place. Then when you go to take it off clean it as well as possible before removing the tape.


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

My company manufactures protective apparel and we have these 18" plastic sleeves you may be interested in. It's a tube with elastic ends. Might be a little big though. If not it will keep the cast clean, and maybe you could tape the ends closed when he's around sand/water.

I'll be happy to send you a bag of samples for free if you want to try them out. PM me with your address and I'll send em out


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

CJ

That looks great







Thanks alot for the offer. I have emailed you.

Thanks again,
Thor


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

Package is on the way


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## Katrina (Dec 16, 2004)

That was pretty nice of you Jim.
You show up at my campsite, and you drink for free.
I was initially gonna suggest duct tape on the cast.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

Well we came back from the fracture clinic and good news, Ethan's arm is healing well. The x-ray shows that his arm is straight and the break just shows up as a white line. His wrist is back to normal.







Unfortunately he will have his cast on until mid July.

Jim

Thanks for the cast protectors, I think they will work out very well. Ethan loves to play in the sand as all 4 year olds do. This should make our vacation that much better.

Thanks to everyone for their support.

Thor


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## cookie9933 (Feb 26, 2005)

Very good news







to hear that Ethan's arm is healing properly. Nice and straight. I have heard that bones are even stronger at the location of the break after healing than before they are broken.

Bill


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## dougdogs (Jul 31, 2004)

Good to hear, Thor







I wish I had a cast, but with my shoulder injury, I just have a pain in the a$$ sling

Doug


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

Good news Thor









John


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## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

Glad to hear that Ethan's arm is healing O.K.
Don


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Yep, glad he's on the mend.

Mike


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