Delays in open fracture management: where do they occur?
We audited the delays in the management of 29 patients presenting to our department with 30 open fractures over a 1-year-period to ascertain where the most lengthy delays were occurring. Gold standard treatment is the surgical debridement and stabilisation of the fracture within 6h of injury. In our series only 14 patients achieved this standard. The lengthiest delays were in getting a patient to the operating theatre following orthopaedic assessment. We have introduced an "open fracture proforma" to highlight the time-critical nature of the injury in an effort to speed-up the process.
Ashford
Robert U
RU
Department of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery, York Hospital, UK. robert.ashford@virgin.net
Frasquet-Garcia
Antonio
A
Patel
Kalpit K
KK
Campbell
Peter
P
D003646:Debridement / Q000592:standards; D004739:England; D005260:Female; D005592:Fracture Fixation / Q000592:standards*; D005597:Fractures, Open / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008485:Medical Audit; D009104:Multiple Trauma / Q000601:surgery; D011859:Radiography; D013997:Time Factors