The Walking Caliper Splint and Its Uses

that no mobility at the site of fracture remains, the new hone is not at first strong enough to bear the weight of the body. If it is subjected to this it may break or more frequently it may bend. It is necessary at first to support it and to relieve it of weight-bearing. This can be done by the simple method of carrying the weight through a ring, which fits closely around the top of the thigh,on to two lateral uprights of steel which end in a socket in the heel of the boot. Provided that the ring fits closely beneath the tuberosity of the ischium, which must rest upon it and that the lateral steels are made of such a length that the heel does not reach quite to the bottom of the boot, the whole of the body weight will be carried to the ground through the appliance. The patient is first fitted with a pair of light boots and the boot of the injured side has a hole drilled obliquely through the heel of sufficient diameter to take the, bars of the splint, usually about f inch. The obliquity of the tunnels should be such that the outer hole is one rnch