Distal radius fracture fixation using WALANT versus general and regional anesthesia: A systematic review and...

WALANT (wide-awake local anaesthetic no tourniquet) has become a popular technique in upper limb surgery including distal radius fracture fixation. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to assess the effectiveness of the WALANT technique in distal radius fracture fixation, and to compare it to both general and regional anaesthesia.

Pubmed, Embase, and Scopus databases were searched on 26/06/21 according to the PRISMA guidelines with the following search terms: radius, WALANT, "local anesthetic", wide-awake surgery. All studies comparing WALANT with other forms of anaesthesia for distal radius fracture fixation were included.

110 articles were identified, six studies (410 patients) were included, 164 of these patients were in the WALANT group. Two patients (1.2%) in the WALANT group and seven (6.5%) in the regional anaesthesia group required conversion to general anaesthesia. There was no statistically significant difference in post-operative complications, intra-operative VAS pain scores, operative times, functional or radiological outcomes. A statistically significant 8.6 mls increase in pooled mean blood loss in the WALANT group was noted (p = 0.02) although the clinical significance of this is doubtful.

The WALANT technique for distal radius fracture fixation is non-inferior to regional and general anaesthesia. It is a safe and effective technique that surgeons may consider utilising, especially for patients not suitable for general anaesthetic or in centres in which there is a lack of access to specialist anaesthetic equipment and care.