Nursemaid's Elbow
Dr. Alan Himmel
It is never a good idea to pull or tug a young child by the arm. This action may create what is called a nursemaid's elbow.
What essentially happens is that a person, who is trying to control an uncooperative child, grabs the child by the arm. The child of course, still is not cooperative, and fights back, by pulling. The resulting injury is that the head of the radius, subluxates at the elbow causing a lot of pain, guarding, and the inability of the child to want to use the arm or hand.
Often times, the radial head pops back in by itself and the pain and guarding will disappear on its own, allowing for almost instantaneous pain relief. But, sometimes, the joint will not "go back in" without a little help.
I don't recommend doing trying to fix this at home, because without knowing for sure whether it is truly a radial head subluxation or a fracture, it is possible to cause more pain and injury. However, if you are confident the child has a nursemaid's elbow, or if it has happened before (children who have had this injury, may tend to have it again) then this is what you can do to fix it.
Carefully supinate the hand in front of the child. Then, while palpating the radial head with your fingertip and just a little bit of pressure, use your other hand to slowly flex the arm at the elbow. You may have to go past 90 degrees of flexion, but you will feel, with very little effort, the radial head click, and pop back into the correct position. The child may cry a little, but the relief is instantaneous, and within a few minutes, the child should be acting normal again and giving high fives with the injured hand.
