How can you tell if swelling on a toe is due to a fracture or just bruising? i am in ukraine and it is not easy to find a reliable doctor here.

Can be hard to tell: If a toe is swollen from trauma, one can try to move the joints of the toe. If the joints are movable in the normal directions, without crunching noises, without severe pain, then it is probably not broken. If the toe is crooked, has great pain when moved, or looks shorter than normal, it probably is broken. Many times it is hard to tell without an x-ray, so a doctor's evaluation may be needed.

Pain: Fractures are usually much more painful than sprains. One tool we use in the office besides x-rays is a tuning fork. Vibrate the tuning fork and touch the toe with it. If there is significant pain than the bone may be fractured.