Forearm Fracture Surgery (ORIF) in Pearland, TX

What Is a Forearm Fracture?

Your forearm has two bones, the radius and the ulna. They work together to let you rotate your wrist, grip objects, and bend your elbow. A fracture can affect one bone or both. It can happen anywhere along the shaft, near the wrist, or up near the elbow.

Forearm fractures usually happen from a fall onto an outstretched arm, a direct blow, a car accident, or a sports collision. They’re common in children, since falls and sports injuries happen often during childhood. Adults can fracture these bones too, particularly after falls, motor-vehicle collisions, sports injuries, or other high-energy trauma.

Signs of a forearm fracture include sharp pain, visible deformity or bending in the arm, swelling, and bruising. You may also have trouble rotating your wrist or bending your elbow normally. If the bone has broken through the skin, that’s an open fracture. It needs immediate emergency care.

Signs Your Forearm Fracture Needs Surgery

Not every forearm fracture requires surgery. Some stable, non-displaced breaks heal fine in a cast. But surgery is generally the right call when:

• The bone fragments are displaced or out of alignment
• Both the radius and ulna are broken (these almost always need surgical fixation to heal correctly)
• The fracture is unstable and likely to shift even in a cast
• It’s an open fracture with a wound at the fracture site
• The break extends into a joint surface
• A closed reduction (setting the bone without surgery) doesn’t hold alignment

Dr. Burke reviews your X-rays, and sometimes a CT scan for more complex breaks. This helps him determine whether casting alone will get you a good outcome, or whether open reduction and internal fixation offers a more reliable path to full healing and function.

What Is Open Reduction and Internal Fixation (ORIF)?

Open reduction and internal fixation, commonly called ORIF, is a surgical technique. It puts broken bones back into their correct position and holds them there with hardware while they heal.

Dr. Burke makes an incision to reach the fracture directly, rather than trying to set the bone through the skin from outside. That’s the “open reduction” part. Once the fragments are back in place, he holds them there with plates, screws, or sometimes a rod. That’s the “internal fixation.”

For the forearm specifically, that usually means metal plates and screws attached to the radius, the ulna, or both, depending on which bone broke.

A cast can maintain alignment after a fracture has been properly reduced. But some fractures can’t be adequately aligned or kept in the correct position without surgical fixation. This matters most in forearm fractures, where restoring length, alignment, and rotation is critical to normal function.

How Dr. Burke Performs ORIF Forearm Surgery

Every ORIF forearm surgery follows a similar sequence. The specifics depend on which bones are broken and how the fracture pattern looks on imaging. Dr. Burke opens the fracture site and moves the broken bone fragments back into their correct position. Then he secures everything with a plate and screws, or occasionally a rod inside the bone, depending on the location and pattern of the fracture.

He aims for a fixation that’s stable enough to let you start moving your arm during recovery, instead of keeping it locked in place for months. Once the positioning checks out on imaging, he closes the incision and puts your arm in a splint or brace. This protects it through the first stage of healing.

The procedure is performed using anesthesia selected for your individual situation. Depending on the fracture and your overall health, forearm ORIF may be performed as an outpatient procedure. You may go home the same day with post-op instructions on wound care, splinting, and activity restrictions.

Recovery After Forearm Fracture Treatment

Following the right steps after surgery gives your bone and hardware the best chance to heal without complications. Dr. Burke’s team walks you through detailed instructions before you leave. Keep your splint dry and intact until your follow-up appointment. Avoid removing it yourself, even if it feels loose or uncomfortable. Check the surrounding skin for excessive redness, warmth, or drainage, and call the office if you notice any of these signs.

Elevate your arm above heart level as much as possible for the first several days. Ice the area around the splint in short intervals to help manage swelling and discomfort. Take prescribed pain medication as directed. Expect discomfort to ease noticeably within the first week. Reach out if pain suddenly worsens or doesn’t respond to medication, since that can signal a problem with the hardware or swelling under the splint.

Avoid lifting, gripping, or putting any weight through the surgical arm until Dr. Burke clears you to do so. Keep the arm supported in a sling when you’re up and moving around. Dr. Burke sees you within the first couple of weeks to check the incision, review X-rays, and confirm the hardware and bone alignment are holding as expected. These visits determine when you can transition out of the splint and start physical therapy.

Contact the office right away if you notice numbness or tingling in your fingers, fingers turning pale or blue, a fever, or increasing pain that isn’t controlled by medication. These can point to swelling that’s restricting blood flow, or an early sign of infection. Following these instructions closely, alongside Dr. Burke’s guidance at each follow-up visit, gives your forearm the best foundation for a full recovery.

Why Choose Dr. Burke Orthopedics for Forearm Fracture Surgical Treatment in Pearland, TX

Forearm fractures come in many variations: both bones or just one, clean breaks or comminuted ones, fractures near the wrist versus up by the elbow. The right fixation approach isn’t always the same from one patient to the next.

Dr. Burke draws on more than 35 years of orthopedic experience. He assesses each fracture pattern individually and chooses hardware and technique that fit what’s actually broken, rather than applying the same approach to every case.

He’s board-certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery and holds a Subspecialty Certificate in Orthopaedic Sports Medicine. These credentials reflect ongoing training in both trauma care and the kind of functional recovery that matters most for active patients who need their forearm back to full strength for work or sport.

Dr. Burke’s practice also offers same-day and next-day appointments, which matters when you’ve just broken a bone and need answers quickly. From your first visit, he reviews your imaging with you directly and explains the fracture in plain terms. He tells you honestly whether you need surgery or whether a cast will do the job just as well.

Recovery doesn’t stop at the operating room. The practice’s in-house physical therapy team works alongside Dr. Burke throughout your healing. They adjust your rehab as your follow-up X-rays show how the bone is progressing, so you’re not stuck following a generic timeline that doesn’t match how your fracture is healing.