What are the symptoms of a fracture shin

kaeleeann,

Since the tibia is one of the major weight bearing bones, if it is fractured, the patient is usually unable bear weight on the limb. Even nondisplaced fractures are extremely painful and unstable, and most of the time, the patient cannot stand.

However, any direct blow to the anterior tibia (front of the shin) can damage the periosteum. The periosteum of a sheath of soft tissue that covers the bone. It is very vascular and has a lot of nerve fibers in it. Thus, when it is injured, it hurts a lot and can bleed significantly. The periosteum is responsible for the growth of a long bone in width and it repairs any damage to the bone. Bone, itself, does not have any nerve endings, but the periosteum does, this is why fractures hurt. Since there is little soft tissue over the front of the shin, the periosteum is easily damaged, as it is basically just under the skin.

So, you may have some scar tissue at the area where the periosteum was damaged. Then, when you stress the area with running, jumping, sports activities, you can get shin-splint type of pain. This is also called medial tibia syndrome, as well as several other names.

If the usual home remedies to not help significantly, you may need to see an orthopedic surgeon. The usual treatment is with NSAIDs, orthotics, physical therapy, etc, but if this does not help, sometimes an injection of steroid is needed to calm the inflammation down. An x-ray is also a good idea, just to make sure you have not significantly injured the tibia. It is possible to chip or dent the bone, but usually the body will take care of this on its own, within a couple of months. But, the periosteal injury can continue to cause problems from the formation of scar tissue.

Good luck.