Home » NCLEX » NCLEX-RN » A 71-year-old client fell and injured her left leg while cooking in the kitchen.
A 71-year-old client fell and injured her left leg while cooking in the kitchen. Her husband calls the ambulance, and she is taken to the emergency department at a local hospital. X-ray reports confirm that she has an intertrochanteric fracture of the left femur. Her left leg will require skeletal traction initially and then surgery. The nurse knows that this type of traction will be used:
A. By inserting pins to provide steady pull on the bone
B. To suspend the leg in a sling without pull on the extremity
C. Intermittently to place a pull over the pelvis and lower spine
D. With weights at both ends of the bed to maintain pull on the upper extremity
Correct Answer: A
Explanation/Reference:
Explanation:
(A) Skeletal traction is the application of traction directly to bone with the use of pins and wires or tongs for the purpose of providing a strong, steady, continuous longitudinal pull on the bone. It is indicated for preoperative immobilization and positioning of hip and femur fractures. (B) A type of skeletal traction (balanced suspension with a Thomas splint and Pearson attachment) uses a sling to support the extremity, but it also uses weights to provide a strong, steady continuouspull on the extremity. A sling is used instead of pins. (C) Pelvic traction provides an intermittent pull over the pelvis and bone, whereas skeletal traction is continuous. Pelvic traction does not use pins. (D) Skeletal traction uses weights at the end of the bed to provide a continuous pull on long bones. Weights are not applied to both ends of the bed.
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