DEAR DOCTORS: I was in a car accident, and an X-ray showed I had two broken ribs. A second X-ray taken a month later showed I also had a cracked rib. Why didn’t that show up the first time? Why isn’t there more that can be done for a broken rib other than being told to rest? It’s very painful.

DEAR READER: Fractured ribs are one of the most common traumatic injuries. More than 300,000 Americans visit the emergency room each year with a broken rib, and up to 45,000 wind up spending time in the hospital as a result. The most common causes are a car accident, as happened in your case, or collisions during contact sports. Older adults, whose bones can become frail, are at increased risk of a rib fracture during a fall.

As with any bone in the body, ribs can be bruised, cracked or broken. When this occurs, the muscles and cartilage that hold the rib cage together can also…

DEAR DOCTORS: I was in a car accident, and an X-ray showed I had two broken ribs. A second X-ray taken a month later showed I also had a cracked rib. Why didn’t that show up the first time? Why isn’t there more that can be done for a broken rib other than being told to rest? It’s very painful.

DEAR READER: Fractured ribs are one of the most common traumatic injuries. More than 300,000 Americans visit the emergency room each year with a broken rib, and up to 45,000 wind up spending time in the hospital as a result. The most common causes are a car accident, as happened in your case, or collisions during contact sports. Older adults, whose bones can become frail, are at increased risk of a rib fracture during a fall.

As with any bone in the body, ribs can be bruised, cracked or broken. When this occurs, the muscles and cartilage that hold the rib cage together can also…