Which fracture occurs when bone ends are driven into each other?

• A. Spiral Fracture
• B. Dislocation
• C. Impacted Fracture
• D. Subluxation

Answer: (C)

An impacted fracture happens when a compressive force drives one end of the bone into the other, jamming the fragments together. This mechanism creates impaction at the fracture site and can shorten the bone, often with little or no displacement of the fragments. It’s the pattern you’d expect from an axial load, such as a fall onto an outstretched hand, where the force pushes the bone ends toward each other. This differs from a spiral fracture, which comes from a twisting force that creates a spiral-shaped break; a dislocation, where the joint surfaces are displaced from one another; and a subluxation, a partial dislocation of a joint. So, the described mechanism best matches an impacted fracture.