Fascia Iliaca Block in the Emergency Department for Analgesia After Femoral Neck Fracture

Fascia Iliaca Block in the Emergency Department for Analgesia After Femoral Neck Fracture

Femoral neck fracture is very common in the elderly and can produce severe to moderate pain. As this pathology is not life-threatening, waiting time in the emergency department may be prolonged due to the high number of unforeseen cases with patients remaining in pain.

Fascia iliaca block consists of injecting local anaesthetics below the fascia iliaca, resulting in the anaesthesia of the femoral, the lateral cutaneous and the obturator nerves, with effective analgesia.

The objective of this trial is to compare the fascia iliaca block with a sham injection on patients arriving in the emergency department with a femoral neck fracture.

The fascia iliaca block will be performed with an anatomical landmark technique and a volume of 30 mLs of bupivacaine 0.5% with epinephrine 5 mcg/mL will be injected.

Inclusion Criteria:

- patients with femoral neck fracture in the emergency department

Exclusion Criteria:

• presence of demencia
• body weight less than 40kg
• presence of a cancer or patients receiving chemotherapy
• allergy to local anaesthetics