Template:General Fracture Management

General Fracture Management

• Acute pain management
• Open fractures require immediate IV antibiotics and urgent surgical washout
• Neurovascular compromise from fracture requires emergent reduction and/or orthopedic intervention
• Consider risk for compartment syndrome
• If any limitation to range of motion, orthopedics will often perform elbow arthrocentesis to remove hemarthrosis which is often present
  • The purpose of this is to see whether range of motion is restored after aspiration since if it is not, this may be an indication for surgery
  • This is generally not necessary to perform in the ED but can be done for patient comfort