The journal of trauma and acute care surgery
-
J Trauma Acute Care Surg · Dec 2021
Intercostal nerve cryoablation during surgical stabilization of rib fractures.
Intercostal nerve cryoablation (IC) offers potential for targeted and durable analgesia for patients with traumatic rib fractures. Our pilot study aimed to investigate thoracoscopic IC's safety, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy for patients undergoing surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRF). We hypothesized that concurrent surgical stabilization of rib fractures and intercostal nerve cryoablation (SSRF-IC) is a safe and feasible procedure without immediate or long-term complications. ⋯ Therapeutic, Level V.
-
J Trauma Acute Care Surg · Dec 2021
Pediatric surgical rib fixation: A collected case series of a rare entity.
Rib fractures are uncommon in children and are markers of extreme traumatic force from high-energy or nonaccidental etiology. Traditional care includes nonoperative management, with analgesia, ventilator support, and pulmonary physiotherapy. Surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRFs) has been associated with improved outcomes in adults. In children, SSRF is performed and its role remains unclear, with data only available from case reports. We created a collected case series of published pediatric SSRF cases, with the aim to provide a descriptive summary of the existing data. ⋯ Collected case series, level V.