A biomechanical study to compare spinal movement in a healthy volunteer during extrication between ?chain cabling? and ?roof off? methods of extrication

Introduction: Following a motor vehicle collision some patients will remain trapped. Traditional extrica-tion methods are time consuming and focus on movement minimisation and mitigation. 'Chain cabling' is an alternative method of extrication used in some countries. The optimal extrication strategy and the effect of extrication methods on spinal movement is unknown. This study compares 'chain cabling' to the established roof removal method of extrication on spinal movement.Methods: Biomechanical data were collected using Inertial Measurement Units on a single healthy volun-teer during multiple experiments. The extrication types examined were chain cabling and roof removal. Measurements were recorded at the cervical and lumbar spine, and in the anteroposterior (AP) and lat-eral (LR) planes. Total movement (travel), maximal movement, mean, standard deviation and confidence intervals are reported.Results: Eight experiments were performed using each technique. The smallest mean overall movements were recorded during roof-off extrication (cervical spine 0.6 mm for AP and LR, lumbar spine 3.9 mm AP and 0.3 mm LR).The largest overall mean movements were seen with chain cabling extrication (cervical spine AP 5.3 mm. LR 6.1 mm and lumbar spine 6.8 mm AP and 6.3 mm LR). Conclusion: In this study of a healthy volunteer, roof-off extrication was associated with less movement than chain cabling. The movement associated with chain cabling extrication was similar to that previously collected for other extrication types.(c) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ )

Automated summary

This study compared the effects of "chain cabling" and traditional roof removal method of extrication on spinal movement by conducting experiments on a single healthy volunteer. The findings indicated that roof removal method was associated with less spinal movement compared to chain cabling extrication in this study.