title: Towards evidence-based emergency medicine: best BETs from the Manchester Royal Infirmary. BET 2: Immobilisation of stable ankle fractures: plaster cast or functional brace?
abstract: A short-cut review of the literature was carried out to establish whether a functional brace was as good as a traditional plaster of Paris to immobilise a stable ankle fracture in terms of functionality and recovery speed. A total of 260 papers was found using the below outlined search method, of which five were thought to represent the best evidence to answer the specific clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of these are shown in table 2. The clinical bottom line is that the limited evidence seems to suggest that a functional brace appears to give more favourable outcomes. Good quality studies involving large populations are, however, needed to delineate a clear answer to this specific question.
authors.affiliation: Manchester Royal Infirmary.
authors.forename: Anna J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Thackray
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Taylor
mesh_terms: D064386:Ankle Fractures; D001915:Braces; D002370:Casts, Surgical; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000592:standards*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007103:Immobilization / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: emergency department