Treatment of acute leg compartment syndromes by lateral single-incision four-compartment fasciotomy
CHEN Hua
HAO Ming
ZHANG Wei
GAO Yuan
LIANG Xiang-dang
ZHANG Qun
GUO Yi-zhu
TAO Sheng
ZHANG Li-hai
TANG Pei-fu
Abstract：Objective To evaluate clinical effects of single-incision four-compartment fasciotomy ( SICF ) in the treatment of acute leg compartment syndromes.Methods From January 2011 to December 2013, 32 patients ( 32 sides ) with acute leg compartment syndromes and tibia and ifbula diaphyseal fractures were treated with SICF techniques. This series covered 20 males and 12 females with the average age of 33.4 years ( range: 25-50 years ). The left leg was involved in 14 cases, while the right in 18. Twenty patients presented with close injuries, and the other 12 sustained from open fractures ( Gustilo-Anderson I in 8 cases and II in 4 ). The time from injury to operation ranged from 5hrs to 16 hrs ( neutral: 10 hrs ). Decompression was done in all cases by SICF technique.Results The operation time ranged 40-90 mins ( mean: 70 mins ). The length of incision ranged 20-25 cm with a mean of 22.4 cm. The wounds in all cases healed well without any incision related complications such as deep vein thrombosis, peroneal superficial nerve injuries. All patients in this series got followed-up, which ranged from 12 to 24 months with an average of 16 months and revealed fracture union without infections in all cases.Conclusions SICF can provide a complete decompression of the four compartments in the leg with relatively minimal damage to the soft tissues and a clear surgical exploration, being a good alternative to the conventional double incision fasciotomy.
Keywords：Soft tissue injuriesDecompressionsurgicalCompartmental syndromeExtremitiesWounds and injuries
Publication Date：2015-01-01
Online Publishing Date：2025-08-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：4( 439-442 )