Efficacy of damage control orthopedics strategy in the management of lower limb trauma

Background Little is known about the efficacy of damage control (DC) surgery in the management of lower limb trauma. Here we compared the clinical parameters and complication rates of such patients received either DC or emergency comprehensive (EC) surgery treatment. Methods This study is a retrospective study on patients with lower limb trauma that received surgical treatment. Data of 120 patients were divided into DC and EC surgery groups. Clinical parameters obtained at hospital admission and complications during follow-up were analyzed. Injury Severity Score (ISS), Gustilo classification and Mangled Extremity Severity Score (MESS) were used to assess trauma severity, open fractures and viability of injured limb, respectively. Results Age, sex, ISS, fracture type, injury site, MESS, operation time, blood loss, pulmonary and cranial injuries were compared. We found that patients in the DC group had more severe injury as reflected by the higher injury severity score (ISS) (28.1 ± 10.9 vs 21.3 ± 7.4, P < 0.001). ISS was also identified as a significant influencer for the treatment selection (P < 0.001). In addition, patients treated with DC surgery demonstrated less complications (7 cases vs 27 cases), which was supported by the propensity score logistic regression analysis (Odd ratio 4.667). Conclusions DC surgery is more often selected to treat patients with more severe lower limb injuries, which leads to lower complication rates.