Summary
Pretibial lacerations remain one of the commonest yet most neglected conditions facing
emergency departments and plastic surgeons alike. Furthermore, these injuries afflict
the most vulnerable groups of adults - the elderly and the infirm. It is essential
therefore to have an approach to pretibial lacerations based on best available evidence,
in order to optimize wound outcomes, but perhaps more importantly, to safeguard the
general health of the vulnerable individual. We present an evidence-based approach
to the tertiary management of these injuries and propose a treatment algorithm that
we have utilized in our unit to successfully manage 40% of tertiary referrals of pretibial
lacerations in a conservative manner.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: January 24, 2012
Accepted:
December 24,
2011
Received:
September 21,
2011
Identification
Copyright
© 2012 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
