Trauma: Management of Extremity Fractures and Complications
- Antibiotic prophylaxis for all open extremity fractures is recommended.
- Washout and debridement of all open fractures within 24 hours of admission is recommended.
- Multidetector computed tomographic angiogram (MDCTA) has high sensitivity and specificity for identifying arterial injury in patients with soft signs of vascular injury due to blunt or penetrating extremity trauma
- Early tourniquet use can be life-saving when used to control active hemorrhage from severe extremity trauma and is associated with a low rate of complications
- If not immediately life threatening, the mangled extremity is best managed with a multi-disciplinary team approach.