TREATING BUCKLE FRACTURES IN CHILDREN WITH REMOVABLE SPLINTS

Correspondence

[email protected]

Date of acceptance

September 8 2010

Updated November 7 2011

Peer review

This article has been subject to open review and has been checked using antiplagiarism software

Author guidelines

www.nursingchildrenandyoungpeople.co.uk

Pictured opposite: Elizabeth Wright with a patient who is wearing a removable splint. Picture reproduced with consent

Online archive

For related information, visit our online archive of more than 6,000 articles and search using the keywords

Conflict of interest

None declared

Elizabeth Wright is an advanced nurse practitioner (paediatric orthopaedics) at Southampton General Hospital

Nursing Children and Young People 23(10):p 14-17, December 2011.

Abstract

Buckle fractures of the distal radius are unique to children. Immobilising the limb in a plaster cast is the traditional treatment. An alternative is to use a removable wrist splint and this has been adopted at the author's clinic. In this article, literature on the change of practice is reviewed, the change is described and the outcomes evaluated. It was found that treatment with the wrist splint was cost-effective and was preferred by children, families and carers.