Do femoral nerve blocks reduce acute pain and use of opioids in elderly patients with hip fractures?

BEEM Bottom Line

Why is this study important?

Hip fractures in the elderly are a significant burden in the emergency department (ED). In 2010 alone, there were over 250,000 cases of acute hip fracture in patients > 65 years old in the United States.[1] Femoral nerve block (FNB) has been shown to be an effective ED analgesic intervention that improves pain at rest, pain with movement, and overall function for patients with acute hip fracture.[2] Elderly patients although the most likely to suffer hip fractures, have often been excluded from such trials because of cognitive impairment. This is the first FNB trial to focus on elderly patients with hip fracture regardless of cognitive function.

Which, if any, threats to validity are most likely to have an impact on the results and how?

Thank you for your interest in the BEEM Journal!

To read the rest of this article or to access the entire collection of BEEM Critical Appraisals, please purchase a subscription at the link below.

If you would like a pre-view, click here to view some sample articles

Premium Content Available Through Subscription

BEEM is a knowledge translation project which aims to extract the most recent, EM relevant, and valid evidence from the volumes of available medical research and deliver it to EM practitioners in an easily consumable format to help guide their clinical practice. This valuable distilled information provided by BEEM is available through BEEM's accredited CME courses or through our online journal.

A BEEM Journal Subscription will provide you with unlimited access to our entire collection of Critical Appraisals for 1 year.