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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffGrowth plates are the softer parts of your child's bones, where growth occurs. Located at each end of a bone, growth plates are the weakest sections of the skeleton — sometimes even weaker than surrounding ligaments and tendons. Because growth plates are so fragile, an injury that would result in a joint sprain for an adult can cause a growth plate fracture in your child.
Growth plate fractures often need immediate treatment because they can affect how the bone will grow. An improperly treated growth plate fracture could result in a fractured bone ending up more crooked or shorter than its opposite limb. But the comforting news for your child is that with proper treatment, most growth plate fractures heal without complications.
Symptoms- Growth Plate Fractures, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, accessed 7/31/08, http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/fact/thr_report.cfm?Thread_ID=244&topcategory=Children
- Questions and Answers About Growth Plate Injuries, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, accessed 7/31/08, http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/growth_plate/growth.htm
- Kay, BK-B, Chapter 42 - Orthopedics, Children's Dislocations and Fractures, In: Doherty GM, CURRENT Surgical Diagnosis & Treatment, 12th Edition, 2006, The McGraw Hill Company, accessed 7/21/08, http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=23
- Green NE, Chapter 8 - Fractures of the Forearm, Wrist and Hand: Management of Specific Injuries: Growth Plate Injuries To The Distal Radius and Ulna. In: Skeletal Trauma in Children, 3rd ed., 2003, Saunders, accessed on 7/23/08 through MDConsult, http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/100201301-4/728371990/1219/127.html#4-u1.0-B0-7216-9294-X..50013-2--cesec62_310
