Getting hurt is a part of life! Even though we do our best to take care of ourselves and avoid injury, it sometimes just happens when you live an active lifestyle. But what happens when the injury you thought was just a strain or sprain is still causing you pain?

That’s where we come in! Our center is fully equipped with an X-ray machine that can help diagnose a potential fracture or break with ease. Stop by for a digital X-ray at our AFC Urgent Care Chattanooga clinic, and read on below to learn more about bone fractures.

How Do Fractures Occur?

Experiencing a fracture can be really painful. Your bones are built to withstand the regular pressures of life and actually have a flexible quality to them, but certain situations prove to be too much force. If an impact or a fall is intense enough, the force can cause small cracks or partial breaks to appear.

Fractures aren’t full breaks of the bone, but they can become one if quick action isn’t taken. If the site of the injury is swollen, painful to the touch or to movement, or has an obvious visual deformity, come see us right away.

Common Bones That Experience Fractures

• Wrists
• Ankles
• Hips
• Clavicle (collarbone)

What Does an X-ray Do for a Fracture?

When you stop by our clinic, we will do a thorough visual exam and ask a lot of questions about what caused the injury. This is to ensure we have all of the information we need to help you! Then we will take you to our X-ray machine and get a digital image. A digital X-ray is an image uploaded onto a computer rather than an image taken on film.

This allows us to get a more enhanced look at the injury site. We can zoom in on the picture without sacrificing image quality and we can get a clearer picture of what is going on. For fractures, we are looking for a darker space within the regular white image of your bone. If we recognize a fracture, we can discuss treatment option and pain management strategies together!

The Benefits of a Digital X-ray

• Less radiation exposure
• Clear images
• Fast turnaround
• Less environmental impact

Think you have a broken bone? Come see us at AFC Urgent Care Chattanooga for an X-ray today.