[HeyLaughingBoy]

A long time ago my wife shattered her wrist. In the ER, they explained that they needed to reset it so it could be put in a splint before surgery could be scheduled. They weren't going to use anesthetic. She would be conscious of the pain as they moved her wrist into position, but they'd give her something so she wouldn't remember the experience.

15+ years later she remembers telling them to go ahead and do it, then there's a hole in her memory for about 10 minutes.

I'd say that's one good solution.

[colanderman]

Interesting -- I recently had a similar experience (very bad wrist fracture), but they used a nerve block instead. I was conscious and it was painful, but not unbearably or traumatically so. I wonder why a nurse would choose one over the other.

[HeyLaughingBoy]

Dunno. It was about 15 years ago and may have had something to do with the extent of the injury? She was 25 at the time and the orthopedic surgeon kept saying he couldn't imagine the amount of energy it took to do that much damage to such young bones. The wrist was shattered into at least 5 pieces.

This is one reason we always give a shoutout to Tria Orthopedics in the Twin Cities, MN region when someone needs an orthopedist: she was one of their first patients and the wrist maintained full range of motion after healing.

[colanderman]

Ah, mine was "only" three pieces... still the talk of the ER though :P They did insist on full anesthesia for the surgery (the fracture was unstable so I needed a plate). Glad to hear she recovered full range of motion; getting close myself.

[gateaux]

Wow. Do you happen to know what it was they gave her?

[roywiggins]

I believe midazolam can cause amnesia, it's not technically an anesthetic in the sense that it doesn't knock you out, but it's a sedative.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midazolam

[atdrummond]

Versed’s ads on radiology magazines literally say “For when they need to forget.”

[lostlogin]

Ketamine has been something I have seen used. The lack of reaction from people having broken bones manipulated while under its influence is very disconcerting.