broken bone
iStockphoto.com/Robert Brown
Your body is working hard to repair a broken bone from the moment an injury occurs.

If you experience engine trouble, you take your car to a mechanic. If your pipes leak, you call a plumber. And if you fracture a leg, the usual course of action is to visit a doctor. But unlike other things that may break in life, bones begin healing on their own before you even set foot in a waiting room.

The human body possesses amazing healing powers that enable it to bounce back from a vast array of illnesses and injuries. Sometimes broken bones can heal so thoroughly within a few months that even an x-ray can't determine the original fracture line.

Doctors often play a vital, sometimes lifesaving, role in a bone's healing process. But, these experts basically help the body heal itself. Doctors provide optimal conditions for bone repair and healing to take place. The rest is up to your cells.

But how does this amazing biological process work? How can a fractured limb grow back to its former strength? To understand, you first have to take a closer look at just what bones are made of and how alive they really are.

Types of Fractures
When it comes to broken bones, about the cleanest injury you can hope for is a simple fracture. As the name implies, the bone breaks cleanly in one place with no other additional trauma. Other breaks that aren’t as easily mended:
  • Compound fracture: The broken bone punctures the skin.
  • Impacted fracture: One end of the fractured bone is driven into the other.
  • Comminuted fracture: Part of the bone shatters into fragments.
  • Greenstick fracture: A child's bone bends and cracks, but doesn’t break.
  • Avulsion fracture: A powerful muscle contraction wrenches bone and tendon, forcing a fracture.
  • Pathological fracture: Bones weakened by disease break with little force.