1. Provide Minimal Treatment at Home
Unless it's a common occurrence for your child and her doctor has instructed you in reducing the injury, nursemaid's elbow needs to be treated by a medical professional. In the meantime, however, you can make her a little more comfortable by giving her a cold, damp towel to wrap around her arm or an icepack to hold in place. Though over-the-counter medicines like ibuprofen and acetaminophen can help to relieve pain, it's best to wait until your child has been seen by the doctor before giving her any medication.
2. To the Office or the Emergency Department?
Call your child's pediatrician if you think he's dislocated his elbow. Ask the receptionist or triage nurse whether the best course of action is to go to the office or make a trip to the emergency room. Treating nursemaid's elbow typically doesn't require any special equipment or the attention of an orthopedist, so you may be able to spare your child a fear-inducing trip to the hospital.
3. Reduction Is the Necessary Treatment
Treating nursemaid's elbow requires moving the dislocated bones back into place. This procedure, called reduction, is frequently more frightening than it is painful. The doctor may ask you to comfort your child by holding him on your lap while his arm is examined. He'll then feel along your child's arm to ensure that there are no other apparent injuries and to confirm the dislocation.
Next, you can expect the doctor to grasp the hand of your child's affected arm and gently flex the elbow while turning his forearm. This will cause some pain, but as soon as the elbow is back in place, it will dissipate. You might even hear a slight pop as the radius slips back into place.
4. Treating Stubborn Elbows
In some cases, reduction may not work at first. If this happens to your child, the doctor will try a few more times. If it still doesn't work, he may end up splinting the arm in place and ordering x-rays. Her arm will remain splinted until her follow-up appointment, and it could even correct itself before then (this is rare). However, if the x-rays show a fracture, your child will probably need to be seen by a specialist for more extensive treatment.
