title: First-aid treatments of crush injuries after earthquake: 2 special cases.
abstract: Hyperkalemia and acute renal failure are the life-threatening complications of crush injuries. Vigilant prehospital emergency care is vital to reduce the complications. We report and discuss 2 cases diagnosed as crush syndrome after earthquake, in order to illustrate the value of prehospital application of tourniquets to prevent hyperkalemia accompanying extremity crush injuries. The victim in case 1 died of hyperkalemia shortly after extrication without tourniquet. The prehospital tourniquet had been used to avoid uncontrollable hemorrhage and release of toxic metabolites into the circulation in case 2. Providers need to be fully aware of the risk of hyperkalemia in the field for patients with crush syndrome. Tourniquet application is strongly recommended in the prehospital setting for severe crush injuries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, School & Hospital of Stomatology, China Medical University, Shenyang 110002, PR China.
authors.forename: Xia
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School & Hospital of Stomatology, China Medical University, Shenyang 110002, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiaofeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School & Hospital of Stomatology, China Medical University, Shenyang 110002, PR China. Electronic address: zqapollo@163.com.
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003444:Crush Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D004190:Disasters; D055866:Earthquakes; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000379:methods*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005392:First Aid / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D006947:Hyperkalemia / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014111:Tourniquets