<bold>The aim of the study</bold> was to estimate the efficacy of surgically stabilizing long bone fractures within 48 hours in patients with severe multiple injuries following life-saving procedures and compensating for circulatory-respiratory parameters.
<bold>Material and methods.</bold> The study comprised 364 patients with multiple injuries scoring 7 or more LSO points, who were admitted and treated university department during 1992-2000. Upon admission patients were documented on the basis of computer case histories of diseases and the standard calculation sheets. The assumption was that all long bone fractures in patients with multiple trauma would be stabilized within 48 hours. Parameters for operating were set so that the duration time of the operative procedure could not exceed 2 hours, and the amount of blood transfused could not exceed 2 units.
<bold>Results.</bold> From among 364 patients with multiple traumas scoring 7 or more LSO points, 192 patients sustained long bone fractures that required surgical attention. One-third of the patients were female, the average age of the patients was nearly 45 years, and the average injure severity was 10.28 LSO points. 146 patients underwent 226 orthopaedic operations, out of which 127 were carried out in the first 24 hours, and 23 in the next 24 hours of the hospital stay. The mortality was 13.5%.
<bold>Conclusions.</bold> Stabilization of the long bone fractures within the first 48 hours in patients with multiple traumas, after compensating circulatory parameters, is a life-saving treatment.
