Wringer injuries of extremities.

The manifestations of injuries caused by wringer washing machines were examined in 24 children with a total of 26 injured extremities. The extent of injury was almost always determined at admission and delays of four hours or more from injury resulted in longer hospitalization. The majority of the injuries were minor, but 11% of the injured limbs had skin loss necessitating skin grafting and one patient had progressive vascular compression necessitating fasciotomy. Compression was used as treatment in 23% of the cases. The standards of therapy continue to be antiseptic wound care, elevation, and early coverage of areas of skin loss. The use of compression could not be shown to be either beneficial or harmful.