Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention Strategies for Hair-Thread Tourniquet Syndrome in Infants

Hair-thread tourniquets are a rare occurrence but result in significant injury as a hair or thread wraps around a digit, resulting in tissue swelling, pain, or possible tissue ischemia. This condition is often overlooked in the differential diagnosis for a fussy infant. Awareness of this condition will help nurses and other clinicians identify and treat the condition. Some simple prevention strategies can help parents and other caregivers mitigate risk.