How will I know if the scaphoid bone in my wrist is broken?
The symptoms of a fresh fracture of the scaphoid bone usually include pain in the wrist and tenderness in the area just below the thumb. You may also see swelling around the wrist. The swelling occurs because blood from the fractured bone fills the wrist joint. Thin people will see a bulging of the joint capsule. The joint capsule is the watertight sac that encloses the joint.
Symptoms of a nonunion of the scaphoid bone are more subtle. You may have pain when you use your wrist. However, the pain may be very minimal. It is fairly common for doctors to see a nonunion of the scaphoid bone on X-rays, but the patient doesn't remember an injury. These people probably suffered a wrist injury years ago that they thought was a simple sprain. Still, the most common symptom of a nonunion is a gradual increase in pain. Over several years the nonunion can lead to degenerative arthritis in the wrist joint.
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