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Acute Extremity Compartment Syndrome and (Regional): Anesthesia: The Monster Under the Bed
José A Aguirre1, Morné Wolmarans2, Alain Borgeat3
1Institute of Anaesthesiology, Triemli City Hospital Zurich, Birmensdorferstrasse 497, 8063 Zürich, Switzerland; Balgrist Campus, Lengghalde 5, 8008 Zürich, Switzerland.
Abstract:
Acute compartment syndrome (ACS) is a potential orthopedic emergency that leads, without prompt diagnosis and immediate treatment with surgical fasciotomy, to permanent disability. The role of regional anesthesia (RA) for analgesia in patients at risk for ACS remains unjustifiably controversial. This critical review aims to improve the perception of the published literature to answer the question, whether RA techniques actually delay or may even help to hasten the diagnosis of ACS. According to literature, peripheral RA alone does not delay ACS diagnosis and surgical treatment. Only in 4 clinical cases, epidural analgesia was associated with delayed ACS diagnosis.
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