Birth Trauma: Fractured clavicle (collar bone)

Not uncommon.
Most frequently broken bone at birth.
Usually unpredictable and unavoidable.
Incidence higher with larger size of babies, use of vacuum or forceps and difficult extraction.

Affected kids appear to have paralysis of affected arm (pseudoparalysis), painful movement of affected arm, neck muscle on affected side looks shorter and a bony irregularity maybe felt over the affected bone .

Fracture will be confirmed by chest x-ray. Other injuries need to be ruled out including; injury to nerve plexus supplying the arm and hand of affected side, other fractures of the arm and rarely fractures of the cervical spine.

Usually heals without any specific treatment. Pain may need to be managed with medications and by reducing movement of the affected arm by pinning (the sleeve of the shirt with safety pins) or taping the affected arm to the front of the shirt.

Keep immobilised for 7-10 days, forms a callus (swelling composed of healing new bone) at the site of fracture in 7-10 days and completely heals in 4-6 weeks.