Trauma Patients and Acute Compartment Syndrome: Is There an Ariadne’s Thread That Can Safely Guide the Anesthesiologist/Emergency Physician Out of the Labyrinth?
Eleftheria Soulioti,
Marianthi Pertsikapa,
Barbara Fyntanidou,
Pantelis Limnaios,
Tatiana Sidiropoulou
Affiliations
Eleftheria Soulioti
Second Department of Anesthesiology, Attikon University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Marianthi Pertsikapa
Department of Emergency Medicine, AHEPA University Hospital, 54636 Thessaloniki, Greece
Barbara Fyntanidou
Department of Emergency Medicine, AHEPA University Hospital, 54636 Thessaloniki, Greece
Pantelis Limnaios
Second Department of Anesthesiology, Attikon University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Tatiana Sidiropoulou
Second Department of Anesthesiology, Attikon University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Trauma patients in the emergency department experience severe pain that is not always easy to manage. The risk of acute compartment syndrome further complicates the analgesic approach. The purpose of this review is to discuss relevant bibliography and highlight current guidelines and recommendations for the safe practice of peripheral nerve blocks in this special group of patients. According to the recent bibliography, peripheral nerve blocks are not contraindicated in patients at risk of acute compartment syndrome, as long as there is surveillance and certain recommendations are followed.
