An assessment of pelvic binder placement on patients referred to the Irish national centre for pelvic and acetabular fractures

Pelvic binders are used to reduce the haemorrhage associated with pelvic ring injuries. Application at the level of the greater trochanters is required. We assessed the frequency of their use in patients with pelvic ring injuries and their positioning in patients being referred to the Irish national centre for treatment of pelvic & acetabular fractures. A retrospective review of our trauma database was performed to consecutively select 91 patients for study from May 2024 to May 2025 Patients with a pelvic ring injury defined by the Young and Burgess classification were included. Computed tomography was used to identify and measure pelvic binder placement. 22/91 (24%) had a binder placed. Of the total, 11/91 (12%) patients had satisfactory placement and 11/91 (12%) had unsatisfactory placement; 69/91 (76%) patients with a pelvic ring injury had no binder applied. This is the first study assessing pelvic binder placement in patients referred to the national pelvic and acetabular injury unit. Unsatisfactory positioning of the pelvic binder is a common problem and it was not used in a large proportion of patients with pelvic ring injuries. This demonstrates that there is a need for continuing education for teams dealing with major trauma.