Donovan McNabb's Injury May Allow Him To Return to Action By Next Week

Donovan McNabb went down with a rib fracture in the Eagles' 38-10 win over the Carolina Panthers this past Sunday. The injury actually occurred after he had crossed the goal line. The Panthers' Damione Lewis's momentum carried him towards McNabb and he landed on McNabb's ribcage while he was already on the ground. Rib fractures are caused from direct trauma to the ribs, and usually result from an anterior (forwards) force, as we saw in this case. In addition this anterior force most often causes a lateral rib fracture—which McNabb may have. Lower rib fractures—the Eagles have not identified which rib(s) were involved—can be more serious and are associated in 10-20 percent of the cases with damage to internal organs (spleen or liver). Provided the rib injury is not displaced (a fracture that is shifted) and is not associated with a more serious organ injury, the management is fairly straight foward. The goal for the athlete i...