ISSN (Online) : 2277-4572
Author(s): Andee Dzulkarnaen Zakaria*, Syed Hassan, Wong Su Chin, Syed Azhar Syed Sulaiman, Amer Hayat Khan
Motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) have been a major cause of morbidity and mortality since the introduction of the automobile. Multiple injuries often occur in people who are involved in traffic accidents, and rib fractures are among the most common of these injuries, with an occurrence as high as 60 %. The location of specific rib fractures is an important indicator of related injury. A case of ribs and sternal fractures was discussed in this report. In this case, the patient was not wearing seatbelt and had a contact with the steering wheel on the lower abdomen. He complained of chest and abdominal pain which were made worse upon movement and breathing. After careful examination and investigation, the patient was diagnosed with ribs and sternal fracture. Treatment plan during admission included monitoring of vital signs and worsening of chest or abdominal pain, intravenous analgesic which was later switched to oral analgesics, incentive spirometry, breathing exercise and ambulation encouragement. Patient was allowed to be discharged with oral analgesics after two days of admission and to be followed up in two weeks time.
