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Abstract

You are a trauma team leader. Your patient has multiple rib fractures as well as a flail chest and is clearly in pain and has somewhat laboured breathing. The anaesthetist is getting ready to induce and then intubate the patient to take him up to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for mechanical ventilation. You wonder if it is a good idea to be this aggressive, and if more conservative management would result in a better outcome. You do not however have any evidence to hand to prove things one way or the other. This Best Evidence Topic review answers this question analysing the available evidence. The clinical bottom line being; CPAP and good analgesia with PCA and epidural anaesthesia is enough to avoid intubation and its complications in most conscious and breathing patients who have multiple rib fractures.

Keywords

Multiple rib fractures intubation best evidence topic review

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To intubate or not to intubate – management of multiple rib fractures

Abstract

Keywords

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References