In the case of a 17-year-old male with severe calf pain after a traumatic injury, which intervention should be ordered to assess for acute compartment syndrome?

The most appropriate intervention to assess for acute compartment syndrome in the scenario described is tissue pressure studies. This method directly measures the pressure within the muscle compartments of the leg. Acute compartment syndrome occurs when pressure within these compartments increases to levels that compromise blood flow and tissue viability, often following trauma.

Tissue pressure studies involve inserting a needle connected to a pressure monitor into the muscle compartment to measure the intramuscular pressure. This is crucial for diagnosing compartment syndrome, as elevated pressures can confirm the condition and guide urgent surgical intervention, such as fasciotomy, to prevent permanent muscle and nerve damage.

While other imaging techniques such as CT scans, ultrasounds, and X-rays may provide useful information about the overall condition of the leg or identify fractures, they do not directly diagnose compartment syndrome. X-rays can help evaluate for bone injuries, while CT and ultrasound can assess soft tissue injuries but lack the specificity needed to measure compartment pressures directly. Therefore, tissue pressure studies are the most effective and established method for diagnosing acute compartment syndrome in this context.