Aslam Siddiqui, Mehtab A Pirwani, Nasreen Naz, Ataur Rehman, Yunis H Soomro.
Skin traction followed by Spica cast versus early Spica cast in femoral shaft fractures of Children.
Pak J Surg Jan ;24(1):38-41.

Objective: To compare the results of skin traction followed by spica cast and early spica cast in the treatment of femoral shaft fractures in children. Design & Duration: Quasi experimental study conducted from June 2004 to May 2006. Setting: Orthopaedics Unit II, Civil Hospital, Karachi. Patients: A total of 42 patients with fracture shaft femur, aged 3-10 years. Methodology: The patients were randomly assigned into two groups; Group-I (n-21) patients underwent early spica application while Group-II (n-21) patients underwent skin traction in Thomas splint followed by spica cast. Results: Among the total 42 patients, 29(69%) were male and 13(31%) female. The average age of patients was 7.6 years in Group-I and 7.8 years in Group-II. The mean spica application time was 42-56 days in Group-I and 21 28 days in Group II. Satisfactory results were seen in 17(81%) cases of Group-I and 20(95%) cases of Group-II. Conclusion: Skin traction followed by spica cast and early spica cast for femoral shaft fractures in children (3-10 years) are comparable, but the results are better in the former group.

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