1. Splinting and Use of Crutches

2. Emergency Emotional Care
Emergency care relative to emotional reactions to trauma must be provided
Accept rights to personal feelings
Show empathy, not pity
Accept injured person’s limitations as real
Accept own limitations as provider of first aid
Be calm

3. Emergency Splinting
Should always splint a suspected fracture before moving
Use proper immobilization to decrease risk of
Damage
Hemorrhage
Potential for death (if handled improperly)
Splint where athlete lies and avoid moving them
Splint one joint above and one below fracture

4. Rapid form immobilizer
Styrofoam chips sealed in airtight sleeve
Moldable with Velcro straps to secure
Air can be removed to make splint rigid
Air splint
Clear plastic splint inflated with air around affected part
Can be used for splinting but requires practice
Do not use if it will alter fracture deformity
Provides moderate pressure and can be x-rayed through
Half-ring splint
Used for femoral fractures
Requires extensive practice
Open fractures must be dressed appropriately to avoid contamination

5. Lower Limb Splinting Upper Limb Splinting
Foot and ankle require splinting of foot and knee
Knee, thigh, or hip require splinting of whole leg and one side of trunk
Upper Limb Splinting
Shoulder splinting is difficult
Use sling and swathe with upper limb bound to body
Upper arm and elbow
Splint with arm straight to lessen bone override
Lower arm and wrist
splint in position of forearm flexion and support with sling
Hand and finger
splint with tongue depressors, roller gauze and/or aluminum splints

6. Moving and Transporting Injured Athletes
Must be executed with techniques that will not result in additional injury
No excuse for poor handling
Planning is necessary and practice is essential
Additional equipment may be required

7. Proper Fit and Use of Crutches or Canes
When lower extremity ambulation is contraindicated
Faulty mechanics or improper fitting can result in additional injury or falls
Fitting athlete
Athlete should stand with good posture, in flat soled shoes
Crutches should be placed
6” from outer margin of shoe
2” in front of shoe
Crutch base should fall 1” below anterior fold of axilla (2 - 3 fingers)
Hand brace should be positioned to place elbow at 30 degrees of flexion
Cane measurement should be taken from height of greater trochanter

8. Walking with Cane or Crutch
Corresponds to walking
Tripod method
Swing through without injured limb making contact with ground
Four- point crutch gait
Foot and crutch on same side move forward simultaneously with weight bearing

9. Crutch walking follows a progression
Cane Tripod technique
Used on level surface
Modified with stair climbing
Unaffected support leg moves up one step (good goes up first)
Body weight is supported on crutch
Affected leg is pulled up to step
Reversed when descending stairs
Unaffected or good leg is used to lower
Affected leg and crutch (bad goes first)
Crutch walking follows a progression
Non-weight bearing (NWB)
Touch down weight bearing(TDWB)
Partial (PWB)
Full weight bearing (FWB)
When using cane or one crutch, support should be held on affected side