Preoperative Ankle Swelling and the Effect on Postoperative Wound Complications Following Ankle Fracture Surgery:

摘要

Category:TraumaIntroduction/Purpose:It is widely perceived that swelling in the first 24-48 hours following an ankle fracture precludes fixation, delaying operative treatment by 10-14 days to allow swelling to reduce. Such soft tissue management is assumed to be associated with better immediate soft tissue outcomes (wound closure) and mitigation of medium to long-term soft tissue problems.The aim of this study is to identify whether pre-operative ankle swelling has an independent effect on post-operative wound complications following ankle fracture surgery. The hypothesis of this study is that operative intervention at any point in time after the fracture of the ankle, irrespective of swelling, will show no better or worse soft tissue outcomes than those fixations delayed for swelling. The primary outcome measure will be wound complication.Methods:This is a prospective cohort study of patients presenting to a tertiary referral centre that were operatively managed for malleolar ankle fractures. Skeletally ...