Scrotum wound caused by orthopaedic traction table in the surgery of femoral neck fracture

Dear Editors, Traction table is used during orthopaedic surgeries for treating fractures such as femoral shaft and proximal femoral fractures. In this case, we report a scrotum wound caused by the use of traction table during the treatment of femoral neck fracture. The patient was a 49-year-old male, admitted to the emergency department after a fall. The patient’s vital signs at admission were stable. No history of previous illness was reported by the patient. After assessment by emergency physicians, the orthopaedic surgeon was assigned to visit the patient at the earliest. Emergency internal fixation with cannulated screw was opted for by the orthopaedic surgeon. The patient was transferred to the operation room (OR) within 2 hours. Surgery lasted for 2 hours. During the surgery, the patient was kept in supine position on the orthopaedic table. After surgery, the patient was admitted to the orthopaedic ward. Two days after surgery, the patient complained of pain and burning in the scrotums. Orthopaedic nurses assessed the patient’s scrotums and found a 5 cm wound and reported to the surgeon (Figure 1A, B). The orthopaedic surgeon assessed the scrotum wound and reported that the wound was related to the traction table. Inappropriate attachment of traction table to the patient’s scrotum had caused the wound. Lack of sufficient attention while positioning the patient on the traction table had resulted in his scrotum getting attached to the pudendal post in a severe manner and this had caused skin necrosis and injury. Although traction tables are considered safe by orthopaedic surgeons, using them is not without any risk. Perineal wound, paresthesia of calf, pudendal nerve paresthesia, erectile dysfunction, foot compartment syndrome, rupture of epigastric artery, and external iliac thrombosis are some of the complications caused by traction tables, as reported in the