If you suspect a limb fracture, you should immobilise the casualty’s:
Show the correct answer
Correct answer
C. both the fractured area and the joints above and below this area.
Explanation
The question is about immobilising a limb when a fracture is suspected. You immobilise the fracture site and the two neighbouring joints, below and above this site - answer C.
A bone broken in the middle of its length is moved by the muscles attached above and below the fracture, so any movement in the nearest joints shifts the bone fragments. The sharp edges of the bone can then damage blood vessels, nerves and skin, and turn a closed fracture into an open one. That is why with a fracture of the lower leg you immobilise the knee and the ankle, and with a fracture of the forearm - the elbow and the wrist. Immobilising only the nearest joint (answer A) or only the fracture site (answer B) will not stop the fragments from moving. You stabilise the limb in the position in which you found it, without straightening it, for example with a rolled-up blanket, with a splint or by tying the leg to the other one. The Road Traffic Act requires you to give the necessary help and to call an ambulance.
Legal basis: Art. 44 para. 2 point 1 of the Road Traffic Act (Prawo o ruchu drogowym)