2016 Volume 30 Issue 4 Pages 450-453
Severe injuries to the extremities require combined specialized orthopedic and plastic surgery at an early stage. The management of such injuries is difficult because of the lack of specialized trauma centers and so they often lead to poor outcomes. A 32-year-old patient with a Gustilo 3B open tibia fracture initially presented to a local hospital. After the initial skeletal fixation procedure, in which an implant was inserted, he underwent soft tissue reconstruction. However, a pedicled muscle flap partially failed, and the implant was exposed. Two weeks later, he was referred to our facility for soft tissue reconstruction and definitive skeletal fixation. As our facility was located around 900 km away, the patient was transported by jet plane. A year later, he returned to work without any major complications. Severe injuries of the extremities require simultaneous treatment by dedicated surgical teams. It is necessary to establish trauma networks for patients with such injuries to ensure that they receive appropriate treatment. The use of jet planes to transport patients to specialized trauma centers could aid the development of such networks.
