Jp. Furia et al., THE EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF THE HEMATOMA BLOCK FOR FRACTURE REDUCTION IN CLOSED, ISOLATED FRACTURES, Orthopedics, 20(5), 1997, pp. 423-426
Fracture manipulation in the emergency department often requires some
method of anesthesia. This study evaluates the efficacy and safety of
the hematoma block in patients with closed, isolated fractures requiri
ng manipulative reduction. Sixty-one patients treated with a hematoma
block (HE group) prior to fracture manipulation were compared with 53
patients treated with either intravenous sedation or ''conscious sedat
ion'' (NHB group). Using a pain analog scale, patients rated their pai
n from 1 (no pain) to 10 (severe pain) both prior to and during fractu
re manipulation. A pain differential score was calculated for each gro
up. Results demonstrated pain differential scores of 2.7 and 0.8 for t
he HE and NHB groups, respectively. There were no complications associ
ated with any of the procedures. Based on these results, we conclude t
hat the hematoma block is an effective and safe method of providing an
esthesia for fracture reduction in select patients.