The effect of Regional Anesthesia in Diagnosis of Acute Compartment Syndrome
Main Article Content
Abstract
Purpose
Acute compartment syndrome is an orthopedic emergency that may cause permanent tissue damage if not diagnosed and treated on time. The objective of this review was to explore the effects of regional anesthesia, mainly peripheral nerve blocks on the diagnosis of ACS, examining the ability to mask symptoms and related clinical challenges.
Method
A total of 15 studies were reviewed by searching multiple databases such as PubMed, Medscape, Science Direct, Google Scholar, etc. The studies were selected from the past 10 years ranging between 2015 to 2024 by using the keywords “Regional Anesthesia,” “Symptom Masking,” “Acute Compartment Syndrome,” “Anesthesia,” and “Peripheral Nerve Blocks”.
Results
The study reveals that while the use of regional anesthesia, particularly PNBs is effective in pain management, it can delay the timely diagnosis of ACS because it masks critical pain symptoms. Monitoring breakthrough pain and integration of regional anesthesia with measurement of compartment pressure is vital for timely ACS diagnosis.
Conclusion
The need for balanced use of regional anesthesia in high-risk ACS patients has been emphasized by this review, with suggestions made for multimodal monitoring strategies. To further refine the clinical guidelines for patient safety, further research is needed to establish larger prospective studies.