Leg Splints Made From Ski Poles
Every one in a while, an inventor comes up with something remarkable, not only in its ingenuity, but in its simplicity and applicability. Whenever I see something like that, I usually mutter or marvel, “I wish I had thought of that.” Such is the case with the original ski pole Slishman Splint, invented by my friend Dr. Sam Slishman.
Wilderness medical types are familiar with the difficulties managing long bone fractures in the backcountry. A femur fracture can be a devastating, and even life-threatening, injury. It’s common knowledge that realigning the bony fragments and stabilizing the femur are important to control blood loss and pain, and to facilitate victim extrication and transport. There are numerous traction splints for this purpose on the market, but many of them are heavy, bulky and unwieldy in a remote setting. Sam intended to solve that problem. Read more »
This post, Leg Splints Made From Ski Poles, was originally published on Healthine.com by Paul Auerbach, M.D..