What is a Thomas splint used for?
What is a Thomas splint used for?
The modern “Thomas” splint is one of the most common pieces of medical equipment used in hospitals. It is a simple tool used to effectively immobilize limbs and has successfully reduced the morbidity and mortality that was once involved with limb fractures.
What was the Thomas splint designed to help?
It was only during the First World War that his techniques came to be used. Thomas advocated enforced rest as the best remedy for fractures and tuberculosis and created the so-called ‘Thomas Splint’ to stabilise a fractured femur and prevent infection.
Is Thomas splint skin traction?
The T-pulley does not exert traction, but it suspends the patient’s leg dynamically to allow the patient to use a bed pan, to be bathed, etc. The T-pulley is fixed in place. It is suspended by tying the cord securely to the top.
Is the Thomas splint still used today?
This splint is still used today in the treatment of some femoral fractures in children. The Thomas splint has also continued to prove its value in armed conflict.
What did the Thomas splint help prevent?
The earliest splint was first used in 1865 for treating diseases of the knee such as tuberculosis by prolonged rest and immobilisation,1 and only later for the management of fractures of the lower limb.
Who invented the Thomas splint for animals?
The Thomas splint is a common piece of equipment in emergency departments and orthopaedic units in hospitals worldwide. Its basic design has changed little since its first description by Hugh Owen Thomas was published in 1875.
How do you size a Thomas splint?
Size the Thomas Splint (Fig. 1)
- For length, measure the pelvic attachment of the adductor longus tendon to the heel and add 25 cm.
- For the ring size, measure the oblique circumference of the groin (around ischial tuberosity and greater trochanter) of the uninjured side, and add 5 cm (to account for swelling).
Who invented the Thomas splint?
Who invented the splint in ww1?
The Thomas Splint was invented by Hugh Owen Thomas well before it was utilised in World War One. In 1865 Thomas described the splint in his book, Diseases of the Hip, Knee and Ankle Joints with Their Deformities Treated by a New and Efficient Method.
Who invented Kendrick splint?
It was invented by Dr. Hugh Owen Thomas, a Welsh surgeon. When Sir Robert Jones applied this splint during World War I, it reduced mortality of compound fractures of the femur from 80 percent to less than 8 percent over a two-year period from 1916.
