High-Pressure Hand Injury Treatment & Management

  • Author: Glen Vaughn, MD; Chief Editor: Rick Kulkarni, MD   more...
 
Updated: Jan 31, 2011
 

Emergency Department Care

Emergency department care for high-pressure hand injuries includes the following:

  • Obtain radiographs.
  • Prescribe broad-spectrum prophylactic antibiotics.
  • Update tetanus and administer parenteral analgesics.
  • Splint the extremity and keep it elevated.
  • Several authors report that steroids may be beneficial in selected cases, especially when an intense inflammatory response develops or treatment is delayed.
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Consultations

Emergent consultation with an experienced hand surgeon is required. Prompt surgical debridement optimizes tissue salvage.

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Contributor Information and Disclosures
Author

Glen Vaughn, MD  Director, Department of Emergency Medicine, Defiance Hospital

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Dan Danzl, MD  Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine, Professor, University of Louisville Hospital

Dan Danzl, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Emergency Medicine, American College of Emergency Physicians, American Medical Association, Kentucky Medical Association, Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, and Wilderness Medical Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD  Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine

Disclosure: eMedicine Salary Employment

Eric L Legome, MD  Chief, Department of Emergency Medicine, Kings County Hospital Center; Associate Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, New York Medical College

Eric L Legome, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Emergency Medicine, American College of Emergency Physicians, Council of Emergency Medicine Residency Directors, and Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

John D Halamka, MD, MS  Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Chief Information Officer, CareGroup Healthcare System and Harvard Medical School; Attending Physician, Division of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

John D Halamka, MD, MS is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Emergency Physicians, American Medical Informatics Association, Phi Beta Kappa, and Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Rick Kulkarni, MD 

Rick Kulkarni, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Emergency Medicine, American College of Emergency Physicians, American Medical Association, American Medical Informatics Association, Phi Beta Kappa, and Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

Disclosure: WebMD Salary Employment

References

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