A type of bone fracture, especially in children, where the bone bends and partially breaks but doesn't separate into fragments, similar to a green (living) twig bending.
From 'green' (living, not yet dry) and 'stick,' referring to how a green stick bends without completely breaking. This medical term from the 19th century makes an anatomical comparison.
Greenstick fractures are actually a sign that a child's bones are healthier and more flexible than adult bones—while an adult's bone would snap clean in two, a child's bone flexes like a living twig!
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