Charlie has had nursemaid’s elbow, which is a partially dislocated elbow joint, 5 times over the past 7 months. It’s a common condition in children under the age of 5, because they have soft ligaments and their bones are still forming. The first time it happened, Charlie was running at the playground and fell on his right arm. He cried for a little bit, but seemed fine. A little while later, we noticed that he couldn’t move his right arm, and he’d cry when we tried to bend it. As long as he kept his arm slack at his side though, it didn’t seem to bother him. Our pediatrician’s office told us to take Charlie to the emergency room to get an x-ray in case it was broken. A couple of hours later while we were at the pediatric emergency ward, Charlie’s arm popped back into place by itself and he was perfectly fine as if nothing had happened.
Hanging is one of Charlie’s favorite activities!
Nursemaid’s elbow sometimes fixes itself, and that was the case the first 4 times it happened to Charlie. His elbow just popped back into place after a couple of hours. It always happens in his right arm, but we’re never sure of the cause because it never happens after a fall or injury. We’re also very careful about pulling his hands or swinging him by his arms, because those are the most common ways to get nursemaid’s elbow. But even though it looks bad, as long as he doesn’t bend his arm, it doesn’t seem to bother him. Some kids like Charlie are just prone to nursemaid’s elbow.
Charlie was still favoring his left arm this morning, but he doesn’t seem to be in any pain. If you find that your LO can’t move one of their arms, they just may have nursemaid’s elbow. You should definitely get it checked out by a doctor the first time it happens to make sure nothing is broken. But if your child gets nursemaid’s elbow once, they’re very likely to get it again. Charlie is always a little trooper about it though, and it’s a lot scarier than it sounds. It’s just sad to see him playing with one arm!
Has your LO ever had nursemaid’s elbow?
*The information on this site is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment, and is for education purposes only. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
apricot / 260 posts
I had no idea about this until my sister told me about it, she works with little kids. She said hard for her to see a parent lift kids by their arms since the bones aren’t all “set.” She actually warned one her student’s parents, they did it anyway, and the child had their arm popped out of socket. Thanks for talking about it.
pomegranate / 3716 posts
Wow, I’ve never heard of this! Sounds painful, glad Charlie is feeling better!
pea / 21 posts
My daughter Olivia has nursemaid’s elbow (10 times in 18 months). We had no idea what it was when she first had it and I cannot tell you how often we had to take her to the ER. The number of times was so alarming, that the pediatrician recommended that we take her to the orthopedic pediatrican to get evaluated. Luckily, we did that because the ortho provided some good information about Olivia’s bone structure (her body is made to be an gymanist) and ease our concern about her nursemaid’s elbow. According to the orth. ped., nursemaid’s elbow happens very often with Asian babies (that includes Indian descents) and there isn’t much we can provide for the little one, so that it won’t happen again. Unfortunately, when it does happen, the pain can be excruciating for the little one, and the pain takes longer to go away (even after popping it back in) as they get older, probably because all the nerves are beginning to mature around the socket.
apricot / 302 posts
OUCH! I dislocated my elbow in High School at a swim meet (ran into the wall really hard at the end of a backstroke leg in a sprint relay) and when they relocated it, it was probably the worst pain I’ve ever felt! I’m sure its not as painful for a child due to the softer ligaments, etc, but I’m still feeling for the poor guy!
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
This happened to my SIL quite a few times when she was a toddler. My husband actually caused it once when he was lifting her out of the tub.
honeydew / 7968 posts
ugh. never dislocated or broke anything. must be so painful! i can’t believe you don’t have to wear a brace or something for that…..
persimmon / 1255 posts
Ugh, sounds painful. I was cringing reading that entire post. We’re definitely not swinging the LO by her arms ever.
admin / watermelon / 14210 posts
@buttertrifle: interesting that it happens more to asian babies! i’d never heard that.
kiwi / 718 posts
augh, man, the thought of that gives me the willies. good information to have, though, just in case! & I’m with red re: the swinging by the arms. fo sho that is a no.
guest
Today my 2 year old daughter was playing with her brother and
Then started to cry and would not move her arm I got a cold rag
And proped her arm up witch seemed to help. As I was getting ready to take her to th ER she was up and playing like nothing had happened. Could it have been nurse made elbo and can it fix its self just like that
admin / watermelon / 14210 posts
@ashli – yes that could have been what happened. the first couple of times it happened to charlie it popped back in by itself. you just have to be careful not to swing your lo by their arms or pull them up by their arms. they eventually grow out of it when they’re a little older.
guest
My daughter Genevieve is 14 months and has had nursemaids elbow twice. So scary when it happens.