Broken Elbow

My 2 & 1/2 yr old just got out of his sling for a broken upper arm. We had to keep an ace around him to keep his arm against his body for the first 10days. At night we would take the sling off and just wrap the ace around him to keep his arm in alignment. After the first 10 days he would nap in his sling without any problems. My son adjusted a lot better than I expected, best of luck.

If your doctor has an emergency line, call and ask. With our group, there's always an "on-call" doctor, even in the middle of the night. If not, call the emergency room and ask them what you should do. They're always there, and I'm sure someone will know.

Good luck!
A. @ http://prettybabies.blogspot.com

R.,
I know how worried you can be about your 3 year old daughter and her sling. The position of her arm while she sleeps would depend how old the fracture is. If it is a fairly new fracture, less than 2 weeks old - positioning is very important. But the sling is provided to help your daughter hold her arm up while she is sitting or standing. This will help with providing the proper angle for the elbow to heal properly. If you leave it without the sling - during her awake time -it may get to heavy for one and two, her muscles and tendons around the area may become sore too -they are also healing.
As for when she sleeps, you can take the sling off - and prop her arm up on a small pillow. Align her wrist/elbow area (straight) - over her belly or by her side. This will allow for proper circulation. Yes, she will move, jiggle all around the bed. But, don't worry - just reposition the arm. She is only 3 years old. I don't think the doctor will expect anything more. If you do notice swelling to her fingers, lover her elbow more than her hand, this usually helps. Call her doctor if she has TOO much swelling or discomfort though. And remember, try not to let her put anything inside her cast - that will just leads to a whole lot of other issues . Don't worry - you both will do fine.
Good luck....

It will be okay for her to sleep in the sling. My 8yo did that this spring. For the first few nights (when it is most important) he slept on the couch with the sling on and a small pillow between the sling and his body. Mainly so that he would not roll over on it. My husband slept in the recliner next to him.

Is it in a splint or cast? After the first couple of days, she will not have to sleep in the splint at all, it will just be for support during the day.

Good Luck!

Recheck with the Dr.s office and don't start the sleeping with her.Yes you can be worried,but the Dr.would not not tell you to do something that was dangerous for you or your daughter.The sleeping together can cause other problems. Good luck for both of you.

R.,

We JUST went through this wtih my 3 year old!! The first night I watched her, but then she was fine. But take the sling off! I too was afraid she would get caught in it. I proped her arm up wtih pillows either off to the side or on her tummy, then I put some on the other side to deter her from rolling around. She did fine. Within a few days it didn't hurt so bad anymore so she didn't care as much when I positioned it. At first, she didn't like it so much!

Sorry your baby girl is in pain :( Its NOT fun!

Hi R.,

Poor baby!
Call the doc and ask again.

I broke my elbow last year. I did not sleep with my sling on. Did they place her arm in a split cast?. The arm is wrapped in soft cotton ( something very similiar to very thin batting material). The ER placed a fiberglass cast that is opened on the top wrapped with a ace bandage on my arm. During the day I wore my sling, at night I slept with the split cast resting on pillow underneath the arm, no sling. It was hard to sleep but it was easier that way.

My orthopedic doc stated the fiberglass cast would do the job.

Good luck
J.

i would make a sling out of a dish towel or pillow case. even better call the hospital and ask to speak to a nurse, they are there 24/7. i called all the time for questions when my son was just born. i would ask for the chrildens ward. at three i would think she would be able to wake up if anything were uncomfortable. or just take the thing off while she sleeps. my first thought was to put it under neith her pj's. perhaps a tight undershirt to prevent the fabric from being uncomfortable and then another on top to help keep it down ???