Adaptation of the rubber bandage for safe use as tourniquet

The safety of the pneumatic tourniquet lies in the fact that the pressure generated beneath it can be determined and is reproducible unlike the rubber bandage tourniquet with subjective and irreproducible tissue pressure. Application of the rubber bandage over the cuff of an aneroid sphygmomanometer enabled direct determination of tourniquet pressure in sixty-four patients with associated low rate of tourniquet related complications. Seventy-eight limbs, in sixty-four patients, were operated using this composite tourniquet and evaluation after surgery as well as out-patients' clinic follow-up for tourniquet complications revealed complications in six out of eight patients in whom the tourniquet time exceeded 120minutes. In conclusion, the inclusion of an aneroid sphygmomanometer to record tourniquet pressure enhanced the safety of the rubber bandage tourniquet in our study and offers an alternative to the pneumatic type in the attainment of bloodless field where the latter is unavailable.