Hand grenade explosion is a rare occasion in our local community. Most of us have seen or heard about the injuries only from the TV news or newspaper. We report two cases of bomb blast injury that occurred in an army camp in September 2000. These case studies illustrate the clinical presentations of hand grenade blast injures that present with multiple organ involvement. We would like to share our experience in managing such cases in a busy emergency department and highlight the outcome of those two cases. Certain issues pertaining to the complexity of the injuries and mass casualty management are also highlighted.
Physical trauma ; Hand ; experience ; Malaysia ; Hospitals

BACKGROUND: Open wounds to the head with skull bone depression pose the potential for serious injuries to the brain parenchyma and an increased risk of infection. The treatment of these injuries aims to repair the breached dura as well as remove any nidus for infection. Open wounds to the head due to bullets pose special problems and have a high fatality rate. AIM: To review the presentation, management and outcome of depressed and penetrating open fractures of the skull in Port Moresby. METHOD: All cases seen from 2003 to 2005 were included. All were managed without a CT (computed tomography) scan. Their Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) was documented on discharge. RESULTS: There were 340 traumatic brain injury (TBI) cases over a period of 3 years between 2003 and 2005 managed by the Neurosurgery Unit of Port Moresby General Hospital. The open depressed and penetrating skull fractures seen in these cases numbered 46 (14%), of which 42 were males and 4 females. The weapons most commonly used were blunt objects (16), knives (11), guns (6) and axes (4). Gunshots contributed to 4 of the 7 deaths. 4 out of the 7 deaths were due to primary brain injury and 3 were due to infection. CONCLUSION: Open depressed fractures and penetrating injuries form a small but significant group in the management of head injuries. The use of blunt objects, firearms and arrows coupled with increasing urban violence is responsible for most of these injuries. The outcome of patients admitted who are fully conscious is expected to be good. They can be managed by prompt debridement of the wound, elevation of the fracture and removal of fragments as appropriate. However, the mortality rate is high in those with a Glasgow Coma Score of 8 or less on admission, a finding indicative of the severity of brain injury beneath the wound.
penetratin ; g <3> ; Skull ; Physical trauma ; Mores

Stab wounds are the main cause of large-vessel injuries in the neck and they have a fairly good prognosis when the patient receives expeditious and appropriate management. The objective of this study is to present the experience of managing patients with large-vessel injuries in the neck. A retrospective study was carried out involving 22 cases with vessel injuries in the neck over the past 10 years. Stab wounds accounted for 77% of this series (17 of 22 patients). All 22 cases were treated operatively. The overall survival rate was 95%. One patient died on the operating table because of torrential haemorrhage into the chest. Complications included one thrombosis of the right subclavian artery, and five cases of haemothorax, all of which resolved. Successful salvage of patients with major vessel injuries in the neck depends on familiarity with the anatomy, accurate and timely clinical diagnosis and expedient surgical intervention. Patients with haemodynamic instability, rapidly expanding cervical haematomas or uncontrollable bleeding require immediate operative intervention, forgoing any diagnostic study. Stable patients may undergo radiological studies to detect occult injuries that may result in late morbidity such as false aneurysms and arteriovenous fistulae.
Physical trauma ; Neck ; seconds ; Mores ; Large

Acromioclavicular joint injuries usually occur as a result of direct trauma to the superolateral aspect of the shoulder. Roockwood Type IV injuries are relatively uncommon, and they are easily misdiagnosed or neglected in patients who have suffered multiple traumas. Therefore, to correctly treat a patient with type IV injury, we need to take a careful physical examination and conduct proper radiologic evaluation for the acromioclavicular joint. We report here on two cases of modified Weaver-Dunn reconstruction for neglected type IV acromioclavicular joint injuries that were associated with multiple rib fractures.
Acromioclavicular Joint ; Humans ; Joints ; Multiple Trauma ; Physical Examination ; Ribs ; Shoulder

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of 3 leading causes of deaths in the Surgery Department of Port Moresby General Hospital in the last 30 years despite being responsible for only 5% of admissions. It maims and kills the young. Most of these injuries and deaths can be prevented by addressing public health issues such as modifying people's lifestyles to avoid drink driving, wearing seat belts in vehicles and peaceful conflict resolution. Severe disabilities can be minimized by prompt and adequate management that prevents secondary brain injury. This is achieved by aggressive maintenance of normal cerebral oxygenation and blood pressure (BP) and optimization of intracranial pressure (ICP). These outcomes are achieved by ensuring that the airways are patent, with respiration assisted where necessary, and by the use of fluids or inotropes to maintain a normal BP. Prompt appreciation of mass lesions and their removal will optimize ICP, improve cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) and oxygenation. Management of severe TBI involves appropriate use of ventilation and pharmacological agents to ensure ICP and CPP are optimized either in situations where surgery is not indicated or after decompressive surgery. The high morbidity and mortality posed by TBI can be reduced by addressing these issues in Papua New Guinea.
seconds ; Cell Respiration ; Surgical aspects ; Papua New Guinea ; Physical trauma

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate musculoskeletal and psychosocial perception and compare these conditions regarding the type of job (white or blue-collar) and the type of management model (private or public). METHODS: Forty-seven public white-collar (PuWC), 84 private white-collar (PrWC) and 83 blue-collar workers (PrBC) were evaluated. Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) were applied to evaluate psychosocial factors. Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) was used to assess musculoskeletal symptoms. Pressure Pain Threshold (PPT) was measured to evaluate sensory responses. RESULTS: According to JCQ, all groups were classified as active profile. There was a significant association between work engagement and workers' categories (p < 0.05). PrWC workers had the highest scores for all the UWES domains, while PrBC had the lowest ones. PPT showed that PrBC workers had an increased sensitivity for left deltoid (p < 0.01), and for both epicondyles (p < 0.01), when compared to the other groups. PrWC workers had an increased sensitivity for both epicondyles than PuWC (right p < 0.01; left, p = 0.05). There was no significant association in the report of symptoms across the groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: This study showed differences in psychosocial risk factors and musculoskeletal symptoms in workers engaged in different types of jobs and work organization. Personal and work-related characteristics, psychosocial factors and PPT responses were different across workers' group. Despite all, there was no significant difference in reported symptoms across the groups, possibly indicating that the physical load is similar among the sectors.
Cumulative Trauma Disorders ; Human Engineering ; Humans ; Pain Threshold ; Physical Therapy Specialty ; Psychology ; Public Sector* ; Risk Factors*

Medial epicondylitis, also known as “golfer's elbow,” is a common overuse syndrome of the elbow and predominantly affects the origin of the common flexor tendon. We report two unique cases of medial epicondylitis complicated by chronic complete tear of the ulnar collateral ligament and common flexor tendon origin. Physical examination showed a focal huge swelling of medial epicondylar region of the dominant elbow and magnetic resonance imaging revealed complete tear of the ulnar collateral ligament and common flexor tendon and extravasation of intra-articular effusion. Satisfactory results were achieved with ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction and simultaneous repair of the common flexor tendon origin.
Collateral Ligaments* ; Cumulative Trauma Disorders ; Elbow* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Physical Examination ; Tears* ; Tendons

The diagnosis and appropriate management of blunt abdominal trauma including retroperitoneal hematoma associated head injury is difficult. In our case, psoas muscle hematoma was revealed during the evaluation of fever. Psoas muscle hematoma most commonly results secondarily from coagulation defect or from retroperitoneal bleeding into the psoas sheath. The presenting signs and symptoms of this case are hypotension and anemia. Pain is also present in the back or abdomen. If it is associated with head injury and not presented massive hemorrhage, the actual diagnosis is not easy. The appropriate management depends on a careful initial evaluation including suspicion of physician, repetitive physical examination, the timely use of diagnostic procedures.
Abdomen ; Anemia ; Craniocerebral Trauma* ; Diagnosis ; Fever ; Head* ; Hematoma* ; Hemorrhage ; Hypotension ; Physical Examination ; Psoas Muscles

Systemic infection by MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) is a risk in immunodeficient patients such as those with severe burn injuries. Hozai, formulations with tonic effects, may enhance the immune system and we treated two severe burn patients with MRSA infections using Juzentaihoto, which is a remedy for kikyo (deficiency of vital energy) and kekkyo (ketsu deficiency). Both patients suffered flame burns [85% body surface area (BSA) and 40% BSA] and inhalation injuries committing self-immolation. They contracted MRSA in due course and antibiotics such as Arbekacin or Teicoplanin did not control MRSA. Therefore, Juzentaihoto was administered through a nasogastric tube and both of them were finally cured without complications. Juzentaihoto may be useful against fatigue, anemia, malaise, ulcer, and purulent wounds due to severe burns.
Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus infection ; Physical trauma ; Cases ; Infections of musculoskeletal system ; Burn brand of nitrofurazone

Olfactory dysfunction is a relatively common disorder that is often under-recognized by both patients and clinicians. It occurs more frequently in older ages and men, and decreases patients' quality of life, as olfactory dysfunction may affect the emotion and memory functions. Three main causes of olfactory dysfunction are sinonasal diseases, upper respiratory viral infection, and head trauma. Olfactory dysfunction is classified quantitatively (hyposmia and anosmia) and qualitatively (parosmia and phantosmia). From a pathophysiological perspective, olfactory dysfunction is also classified by conductive or sensorineural types. All patients with olfactory dysfunction will need a complete history and physical examination to identify any possible or underlying causes and psychophysical olfactory tests are essential to estimate the residual olfactory function, which is the most important prognostic factor. CT or MRI may be adjunctively used in some indicated cases such as head trauma and neurodegenerative disorders. Functional MRI (fMRI) and psychophysiological tests (olfactory event-related potential, OERP) are also used in the research setting. Compared to rapid progress that has occurred in fields of basic science and diagnostic tools for the therapy of other diseases and disorders, treatments for olfactory loss are still in a state of unmet need. In most olfactory dysfunctions, there has been no well-designed randomized controlled study to justify or prove effective treatment modalities. Therefore, with more attention to the problem and further research we can expect breakthroughs in the treatment of smell loss in the near future.
Craniocerebral Trauma ; Diagnosis* ; Evoked Potentials ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Memory ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Olfaction Disorders ; Physical Examination ; Quality of Life ; Smell