J Trauma
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Setting priorities in the management of patients with suspected injuries to both the head and the abdomen is difficult and depends on the likelihood of different injuries. Eight hundred trauma patients were retrospectively reviewed to determine the likelihood of a surgically correctable cerebral injury. All 800 patients, at the time of initial evaluation, were thought to have potentially correctable injuries to both the head and the abdomen. Of these, 52 had a head injury requiring craniotomy; 40 required a therapeutic celiotomy. Only three patients required both craniotomy and therapeutic celiotomy. There were more cases of delay in therapeutic celiotomy because of negative results of computed tomographic (CT) scanning of the head (13 cases) than there were delays in craniotomy because of nontherapeutic celiotomy (four cases). Need for craniotomy, based on emergency department evaluation, was indicated by the presence of lateralizing neurologic signs. Low Glasgow Coma Scale score, anisocoria, fixed/dilated pupils, loss of consciousness, facial or scalp injuries, and age were of no independent value in predicting the need for craniotomy. ⋯ Patients with surgically correctable injuries of both the head and the abdomen are rare. In stable patients with altered mental status and potential injuries to both the head and the abdomen, the abdomen is best evaluated first by diagnostic paracentesis. If paracentesis does not return gross blood, CT scanning of the head should be done.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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Trauma care is in a period of transition from care given by surgeons at the closest community hospital to care given by trauma specialists at trauma centers and within emergency medical systems. It has thus become increasingly important for the educational goals of trauma fellowship training to reflect the needs of the future system as well as the views of future practitioners. These views differ from those of surgical colleagues practicing trauma surgery, and the views of future trauma specialists should be considered during the formulation of training guidelines. ⋯ They made suggestions about their own training, including ways to increase surgical experiences and opportunities for academic pursuits, but gave no insight as to an appropriate mix of critical care training. Although critical care certification is a major attraction for fellowship training, the cohort does not want to be thought of as nonoperating surgical intensivists. A second year of fellowship training is seen as necessary for research and trauma systems-related studies.
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To determine which factors predict survival in patients with gunshot wounds to the brain, 192 patients who had intracranial injury demonstrated on computed tomographic (CT) scanning were retrospectively reviewed. Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores on admission seemed to be the most important factor in predicting survival. ⋯ The mortality rate was 35%. Among survivors 18% had brain-related long-term disability, and an additional 27% had long-term disability related to associated eye injury.
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A retrospective review of the roentgenograms of 750 patients treated in our institution for tarsometatarsal joint injuries or metatarsal fractures over a 10-year-period was performed. Injuries of the Lisfranc joint were found in 66 patients (9%). Twelve patients (19%) had a total dislocation, 47 patients (71%) a partial dislocation, and seven patients (11%) a subtle injury of the Lisfranc joint. ⋯ Multiple metatarsal fractures and midtarsal bone injuries were more frequent in high-energy vehicular crashes than in low-energy injuries (p = 0.016 and p = 0.033, respectively). In 23 patients (35%), the treatment had been focused on multiple metatarsal fractures or midtarsal bone injuries without full appreciation of the concomitant Lisfranc joint incongruity. Increasing the knowledge of normal foot anatomy and the appreciation of the risk of Lisfranc joint injury even in seemingly trivial stumbling accidents obviously may improve the diagnosis and treatment of these potentially disabling injuries.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)