Open fractures

Summary

Studies have shown promising results that early or immediate wound debridement for open fractures may be better than delayed wound debridement. Time-to-union was shorter, and fewer infections were reported in the groups who had early debridement. Functional outcomes may favor immediate debridement. The proportion of delayed unions or nonunions varied by study. These results should be interpreted with caution as the studies did not have consistent definitions of immediate versus delayed wound debridement, and the fracture grades varied. Additional studies are recommended to verify and further clarify these results.

Strength of evidence | Average methods score (out of 10)