Satisfaction and functional outcome with "self-care" for the management of fifth metacarpal fractures.

Background: Fifth metacarpal fractures are common and comprise a significant proportion of traditional orthopaedic fracture clinic workload. We reviewed the functional outcome and the satisfaction of patients managed with a new protocol that promoted "self-care" and resulted in the discharge of most of these patients from the emergency department with no further follow-up.

Methods: A retrospective study was performed of patients discharged with a fifth metacarpal fracture between April 2012 to October 2012.