Staff opinions on casting material brands: A prospective study

SummaryAimTo determine staff opinions on the application of a sample of seven commercially available casting materials.MethodsThe casting materials were supplied for an exclusive 6-week period to individual hospital departments for sole use in cast applications. Each time a staff member applied a cast they completed a blinded evaluation form to assess the following features of the material's performance:
• ease with which the material unrolled;
• ease with which the peg remained central on the roll;
• effectiveness with which the POP casts adhered to the gauze;
• stringiness of the material;
• how well the material moulded;
• how well the material set.The staff member also noted whether, based on their experience, they would be happy to use the material on a daily basis or not.ResultsA total of 638 evaluation forms were completed for the purpose of this study. Of these, 183 related to POP and 455 were synthetic. Significant differences were identified between the application of POP and synthetic casts and also between the different types of material within each of these categories. Of those staff who expressed a preference, 78% said they would be happy to use POP casts on a daily basis compared to 44% happy to use synthetic casts daily. Of those happy to use POP casts 40% were happy to use Cellona, 90% Gypsona and 40% Conforma. Of those happy to use synthetic casts 20% were happy to use Cellacast, 38% Dynacast, 98% Scotchcast and 10% Deltalite. 22% of staff who expressed a preference objected to the daily use of POP casts compared to 56% who objected to synthetic casts.ConclusionThis study has identified significant differences in application between POP casts and synthetic casts as well as between individual materials within each category. However, staff using casting materials can reach a consensus opinion on the best material to work with. When choosing a casting material, therefore, it is important to consider the application characteristics of the individual material in addition to other factors such as cost and strength. Overall, Gypsona and Scotchcast were the highest scoring materials.