Splinting of injuries: best practice guidance

This article is a best practice guide on the safe and effective general use of splints in the prehospital environment. It is meant to be an informative guide for decision-making while allowing for critical thinking. As such, the guide should not be used as a rule book.

There are many different kinds and brands of splints; however, only commonly encountered splints will be discussed in this article. Methods of application and use of the different splints, as well as the decision-making required to choose the correct splint, will be discussed.

This will assist practitioners in providing patients with the best possible management when immobilising injuries. Please note that exceptional and unique cases will not be discussed in this article; this includes traction splints and pelvic splints.

A splint is a device that is used to support an injury that has caused a body part (normally an extremity) and the associated joints not to function in a normal manner; it achieves this by restraining, immobilising and/or supporting the injured body part (Farlex, 2012). The most relevant injuries requiring the use of splints are dislocations, fractures, severe sprains or strains and torn tendons or ligaments (Cuske, 2008).