March fracture
fracture of the distal third of one of the metatarsals
March fracture is the fracture of the distal third of one of the metatarsal bones occurring because of recurrent stress. It is more common in soldiers, but also occurs in hikers, organists, and other people whose duties entail much standing (such as hospital doctors). March fractures most commonly occur in the second and third metatarsal bones of the foot. It is a common cause of foot pain, especially in those who suddenly increase their activities.
Signs and symptoms
The onset is not dramatic. When the boot or shoe is taken off, there is a cramp-like pain in the affected forefoot, and moderate local edema appears on the dorsal aspect. When each toe is moved in turn, that of the involved metatarsal causes pain, and when the bone is palpated from the dorsal surface, a point of tenderness is found directly over the lesion. Radiography at this stage is negative, but the condition is diagnosed correctly by military surgeons without the aid of x-rays. In civil life, it is seldom diagnosed correctly for a week or two, when, because of lack of immobilization, there is an excessive deposit of callus (which may be palpable) around the fracture.
Diagnosis
X-ray is seldom helpful, but a CT scan and an MRI study may help in diagnosis.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “March fracture” is fracture of the distal third of one of the metatarsals. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through March, fracture and distal, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “fracture of the distal third of one of the metatarsals” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 4, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2898524. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “March fracture”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow March fracture primary sources, March fracture archive and March research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “March fracture”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “March fracture” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.