Skin Traction Versus Position Splint in Patients With Hip Fracture

The Effects of Preoperative Skin Traction and Position Splint on Pain, Comfort and Satisfaction in Patients With Hip Fracture

The aim of this prospective, randomized controlled trial is to compare the effects of preoperative skin traction and position splint on pain, comfort, complications, difficulty level of nursing interventions, satisfaction from treatment and nursing care in patients with hip fracture. The sample is comprised of 34 patients with hip fracture in each group, totally 68 patients. Skin traction and position splint were applied after block randomization. Data regarding pain, comfort, satisfaction from care, immobilization comfort, complications, time of operation and hospitalization time were collected after intervention.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Being inpatient who were planned the surgery due to the hip fracture (caput femur fracture, collum femur fracture, femur intertrochanteric fracture and subtrochanteric fracture) diagnosis in the Orthopedics and Traumatology Clinic
• Being 50 years old or more
• Patients who speak and literate in Turkish
• Patients who gave informed consent to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

• Any condition that emerges an obstacle for verbal and written interaction during data collection phase
• Unable to perform written or verbal communication in Turkish
• Withdrawal from the study due to medical reasons or death, at his/her will prior to preoperative data collection
• Urgent non-elective surgery
• Physician decision that do accept the method of immobilization assigned to the patient as appropriate