Efficacy of traditional chinese medicine in a patient with forearm compartment syndrome after coronary angiography.

Coronary angiography via the radial artery has been widely used in clinical practice. The radial access has the major advantages of fewer traumas, quicker recovery, better hemostasis and lower incidence of complications of puncturefor unnecessarily postoperative oppression. Although literature of forearm compartment syndrome (FCS) after angiography is scarce, however, the FCS could have disastrous clinical consequences and hence drew more attention. The use of bandages together with traditional Chinese medicine is an effective therapy in treating limb sprain in china society. However, it has not been reported in FCS after angiography. Here, we present a case of FCS after routine coronary angiography in a patient with acute heart failure, which was treated by external therapy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) using compression bandaging and the Xiao Zhong Zhi Tong plaster. FCS was caused by failure to puncture the artery and vessel injury caused by a catheter. The clinical diagnosis was based on the "5P syndrome", which standed for pain, paralysis, paresthesia, pallor and pulselessness. We showed that external therapy of TCM could help save time for subsequent surgical treatment and facilitate full recovery.