PURPOSE: The appropriate management of traumatic truncal arterial injury is often difficult to determine, particularly if the injury is associated with severe additional truncal lesions. The timing of repair is controversial when patients arrive alive at the hospital. Also, there is an argument about surgery versus stent-graft repair. This study's objective was to evaluate the appropriate method and the timing for treatment in cases of truncal abdominal injury associated with other abdominal lesions. Methods: The medical records at Ajou University Medical Center were reviewed for an 8-year period from January 1, 2001, to December 31, 2008. Twelve consecutive patients, who were diagnosed as having had a traumatic truncal arterial injury, were enrolled in our study. Patients who were dead before arriving at the hospital or were not associated with abdominal organ injury, were excluded. All patients involved were managed by using the ATLS (Advanced Trauma Life Support) guideline. Data on injury site, the timing and treatment method of repair, the overall complications, and the survival rate were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Every case showed a severe injury of more than 15 point on the ISS (injury severity score) scale. The male-to-female ratio was 9:3, and patients were 41 years old on the average. Sites of associated organ injury were the lung, spleen, bowel, liver, pelvic bone, kidney, heart, vertebra, pancreas, and diaphragm ordered from high frequency to lower frequency. There were 11 cases of surgery, and one case of conservative treatment. Two of the patients died after surgery for truncal organ injury: one from excessive bleeding after surgery and the other from multiple organ failure. Arterial injuries were diagnosed by using computed tomography in every case and 9 patients were treated by using an angiographic stent-graft repair. There were 3 patients whose vessels were normal on admission. Several weeks later, they were diagnosed as having a truncal arterial injury. CONCLUSION: In stable rupture of the truncal artery, initial conservative management is safe and allows management of the major associated lesions. Stent grafting of the truncal artery is a valuable therapeutic alternative to surgical repair, especially in patients considered to be a high risk for a conventional horacotomy.
Abdominal Injuries ; Academic Medical Centers ; Arteries ; Diaphragm ; Heart ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Kidney ; Liver ; Lung ; Medical Records ; Multiple Organ Failure ; Pancreas ; Pelvic Bones ; Rupture ; Spine ; Spleen ; Stents ; Survival Rate ; Transplants

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to compare the outcome of the after trauma team (AfterTT) group to the before trauma team (BeforeTT) group. METHODS: All trauma patients who visited to emergency room (ER) between July 1, 2006 and February 29, 2008 based on trauma registry, with systolic blood pressure (SBP) < 90 mmHg or GCS < 9 were included in this study. We compared the amount of packed RBC transfusion, the ER stay time, the ER visit to CT evaluation time, the ER visit to operation time, the length of ICU stay, the length of hospital admission and the survival discharge rate between the AfterTT group and the BeforeTT group. Patients with brain injuries had little chance of survival. Burn patients, who visited the ER 24 hours after injury and patients who were dead on arrival (DOA) were excluded from this study. RESULTS: Total of 93 patients were included in this study: 42 in the AfterTT group and 51 in the BeforeTT group. The AfterTT group and the Before TT group showed no differences in Revised Trauma Score (RTS) and mean age. The amount of packed RBC transfusion was lower in the AfterTT group, but no statistically significant difference was noted (AfterTT 11+/-11units, BeforeTT 16+/-15units, p=0.136). The ER visit to operation time was shorter in the AfterTT group, but there were no statistically significant difference between the groups (AfterTT 251+/-223 minutes, BeforeTT 486+/-460 minutes, p=0.082). The length of ICU stay was shorter in the AfterTT group, but the difference was not statistically significant (AfterTT 11+/-12 days, Before TT 15+/-30 days, p=0.438). The length of Hospital admission was shorter in the AfterTT group (AfterTT 43+/-37 days, BeforeTT 68+/-70 days, p=0.032), but this difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Simple Trauma team activation criteria decreased the amount of packed RBC transfusion and the hospital admission duration. Hemodynamic instability (SBP < 90 mmHg) and decreased mental state (GCS <9) are good indices for activating the trauma team.
Blood Pressure ; Brain Injuries ; Burns ; Emergencies ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Prognosis

PURPOSE: Many studies have addressed a psychiatric analysis of self-injury patients who have self-injurious behavior and who have attempted suicide. Few studies on the injury characteristics of self-injury related trauma patients have been conducted. We analyzed the injury characteristics of self-injury patients. METHODS: A retrospective review of the medical records extracted from the injury surveillance system of Wonju Christian Hospital for the period from August 2006 to February 2008 was conducted. Of the 121 cases extracted, 103 were included in this study. We analyzed the sex ratio, age group, place of injury, injury mechanism, location of injury, management results, injury severity, and relation with drinking. RESULTS: One hundred three cases were included (sex ratio: 1.06), and the mean age was 33.9+/-14.2 years old. Fifty-six patients (54.4%) were discharged from the emergency department (ED) on the day of injury after primary care, and 9 patients (8.7%) were discharged, because they refused treatment. Seven patients (6.8%) died. Of these, 4 patients (3.9%) died after attempted cardio-pulmonary resuscitation in the ED, 1 patient (1%) was dead on arrival, and 2 patients (1.9%) died after admission. Sixteen patients (15.5%) were admitted to the hospital, including 2 patients (1.9%) needing emergency surgery. Sixteen patients (15.5%) were transferred to other hospitals. Sixty-one cases (59.2%) involved drinking, and 31 (30.1%) did not; for 11 cases (10.7%), the involvement of drinking was unknown. The mean revised trauma score (RTS) was 11.26+/-2.52, and 88 cases (85.4%) hat a RTS of 12. The mean injury severity score (ISS) was 5.80+/-14.56, and 9 (8.7%) severely injured patients had scores of more than 15. CONCLUSION: Most self-injuries were mild traumas related to drinking and occurred at a young age. Most cases were not so severe, and the patients were discharged from the ED, but some patients needed hospitalization. Other patients had injuries so severe that they died.
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Drinking ; Emergencies ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Hypogonadism ; Injury Severity Score ; Medical Records ; Mitochondrial Diseases ; Ophthalmoplegia ; Primary Health Care ; Retrospective Studies ; Self-Injurious Behavior ; Sex Ratio ; Suicide, Attempted

PURPOSE: Computed tomography (CT) is an accurate test for evaluating hemodynamically stable patients with blunt abdominal trauma. Until now, there have been few studies concentrating on the diagnostic and prognostic significance of the intravenous contrast extravasation (CE) site. We investigated the site of CE on abdominopelvic CT (APCT) and its effect on treating trauma patients and predicting the clinical outcome. METHODS: The 50 patients admitted to our emergency department with blunt abdominal trauma showing CE on APCT from January 2004 to September 2006 were included in this study. Patients were prospectively collected, and medical records were reviewed and analyzed. The patients'clinical and lab findings, Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) findings, CT findings were analyzed. CE sites were classified as intraperitoneal, retroperitoneal, and pelvic cavity and were correlated with post-treatment complications, mortality, and morbidity. RESULTS: Of the 50 patients (mean age : 45+/-18years, 29 males, 21 females) included in our study, 33 patients died (66%). There was no correlation between CE site and ICU or total hospitalization duration (p=0.553, p=0.523). During the first 24 hours of resuscitation, the pelvic cavity group required a mean of 20 units more of packed red blood cell (pRBC) transfusion compared to other groups (p=0.003). In the intraperitoneal group, more patients received operative invasive intervention - either laparotomy or embolization (p=0.025). The intraperitoneal group had the highest mortality, with 13 deaths (11/33, 39%), and the highest early mortality rate (10/13, 76%) in the first 24 hours (p=0.001). CONCLUSION: Intraperitoneal CE on the CT scan in cases of blunt abdominal trauma is regarded as an indication of a need for invasive intervention (either angiography or laparotomy) and of a higher mortality rate in the first 24 hours. A pelvic cavity CE rquires more aggressive transfusion with pRBC. However, the CT findings themselves showed no significant correlation with overall mortality, morbidity, or hospitalization.
Angiography ; Emergencies ; Erythrocytes ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Laparotomy ; Male ; Medical Records ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Pyridines ; Resuscitation ; Thiazoles

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate environmental factors contributing to childhood home slip-down injuries. METHODS: Among a total of 2,812 injured children in our Customer Injury Surveillance System (CISS), we performed a prospective study on 262 children with home slip-down injuries who visited the pediatric emergency department of Asan Medical Center between March 2008 and February 2009. We made a frequency analysis on parameters such as activities just before the accident, the presence of any obstacles or lubricant materials, specific home place in the home where the injuries occurred, flooring materials on which the slipdown happened, additional objects hit after slip down, the site and kind of injury, the duration of therapy, and the disposition. RESULTS: Walking was the most common activity just before the injury. Because rooms and bathrooms were most common places in the home for slip down injuries, laminated papers/ vinyl floor coverings and tiles were the most common flooring materials used in the places where the injuries occured. Most commonly, no obstacles caused the children to slip down, but the furniture, stairs, doorsills, wetness, or soapy fluid followed after that. Over half of the children who slipped (58%) also collided with other than the floor itself after the slipdown, most common objects hit were the edges of the furniture, and doorsills, followed by stairways. The head and neck were the most commonly injured sites, and a laceration was the most common kind of injury. Most children needed less than 1 week of therapy, only 4 children (1.53%) admitted. There were no mortalities. CONCLUSION: The environmental factors contributing to slip-down injuries were the bathroom, laminated papers/vinyl floors, the furniture, stairs, doorsills, and wetness or soapy fluid. Especially, the furniture, stairs, and doorsills can be both primary obstacles and secondary collision objects. For the safety of our children, we must consider these factors on housing, when decorating or remodeling our house.
Accidental Falls ; Child ; Emergencies ; Floors and Floorcoverings ; Head ; Housing ; Humans ; Hypogonadism ; Interior Design and Furnishings ; Lacerations ; Mitochondrial Diseases ; Neck ; Ophthalmoplegia ; Pilot Projects ; Prospective Studies ; Walking

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the causes of blow-out fractures, the computed tomography findings, and the associated facial bone fractures in aged patients. METHODS: This study was performed by conducting a chart review. From January 2004 to December 2007, the patients who visited the emergency room of Asan Medical Center and were diagnosed as having a blow-out fracture were included in the study population. Patients 60 years of age or older were grouped as the aged group while patients younger than 60 years of age were grouped as the control group. RESULTS: Between the aged group and the control group, there was a difference in the causes of blow-out fractures. The most common cause of blow-out fracture was a slip down in the aged group and violence in the control group (p<0.05). There were no differences in associated symptoms. Extraocular muscle herniation was the only statistically different computed tomography findings. In associated facial bone fractures, the most common fractures were the zygoma in the aged group and the nasal bone in the control group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: In patients 60 years of age or older, the most common cause of blow-out fracture was a slip down, and the most common associated facial bone fracture was a zygomatic fracture.
Aged ; Emergencies ; Facial Bones ; Humans ; Muscles ; Nasal Bone ; Orbit ; Orbital Fractures ; Violence ; Zygoma ; Zygomatic Fractures

PURPOSE: A missed fracture is a very common occurrence in the Emergency Department (ED) and can have serious results because of delays in treatment, resulting in long-term disability. It is also one of the most common causes leading to medical legal issues. We analyzed the causes of missed fractures by using a bone scan which is known to be an effective tool for diagnosing bony lesions. METHODS: We reviewed the medical records of trauma patients who underwent a bone scan after being discharged the ED from September 2006 to March 2008. Cases of missed fractures were identified by using electronic medical records to review each diagnosis. Definition of missed fracture was read after bone scan by radiologist. We decided that there was no fracture if we read 'trauma-related lesion' or 'cannot rule out fracture' on a bone scan read by a radiologist. Enrolled patients were analyzed by age, sex, time until bone scan and Injury Severity Score (ISS). Patients were divided into two groups, alert mentality and not-alert mentality, so there were split between a diagnosis group and a missed fracture group. ISS was also used in determining the severity of the patient's injury upon discharge from the ED. RESULTS: A total of 532 patients were enrolled in this study. Of those, 487 patients were in the diagnosis group, and 45 patients (8.4%) were discovered to have had a fracture. Of the 45 missed fracture patients, 34 patients (6.4%) had one-site fractures, 8 patients (1.5%) had two-site fractures, and 3 patients (0.6%) had threesite fractures. The most commonly missed fracture was multiple rib fractures (18 patients, 30.5%), followed by lumbosacral (LS) spine fractures (10 patients, 16.9%), thoracic spine fractures (8 patients, 13.6%), and clavicle fractures (6 patients, 10.2%). Mean age was 50.12+/-18.54 years in the diagnosis group and 57.38+/-16.88 years in the missed fracture group. For the diagnosis group, the mean ISS was 9.03+/-8.26, but in the missed fracture group it was 17.53+/-9.69. Missed fractures were much more frequent in the not-alert mentality (p<0.01) and in the high ISS (ISS> or =16) group (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Missed fractures occur most frequent in patients of old age, not-alert mentality, and high ISS. Multiple rib and spine fractures were found to be the most frequent missed fractures, regardless of trauma severity. This study also shows a high possibility of clavicle and scapula fractures in patients with severe trauma.
Clavicle ; Electronic Health Records ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Injury Severity Score ; Medical Records ; Rib Fractures ; Ribs ; Scapula ; Spine

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics and severity of wrist injuries in snowboarding. METHODS: December 2005 to February 2008, Snowboarders who experienced wrist injures were included in this study. On the basis of the medical records and radiographic evaluation, the severity of distal radius fracture was classified according to the Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur Osteosynthesefragen/Association for the Study of Internal Fixation (AO/ASIF) classification. RESULTS: Most of the injured snowboarders were a either of the beginner (35 cases, 46.1%) or the intermediate (27 cases, 35.5%) level. The most common cause of injury in snowboarding was a slip down (60 cases, 78.9%). Comminuted and articular fractures classified as AO types A3, B, and C, which required surgical reduction, made up 42.3% of the distal radial fractures in snowboarders. When we analyzed the differences in severity between the educated and the non-educated groups, an A2 type injury in the AO classification was the most common type of injury in the educated group (20 cases, 38.5%), it means less severe fractures ocurred in the educated group (p=0.045). The most frequent injury mechanism of fractures was slip down (48 cases, 63.2%), and a slip down backwards was the dominant type of slip down (36 cases, 75.0%) (p=0.031). CONCLUSION: Among the snowboarders in this study who suffered self-down injury to the wrist, more fractures were associated with a backwards slip down than with a forward slip down due to over extension. For educated snowboarders the severity of fracture was lower than it was for uneducated snowboarders.
Medical Records ; Radius Fractures ; Skiing ; Wrist ; Wrist Injuries

PURPOSE: This was conducted to assess the need for conventional radiographs of the thoracolumbar spine for routine screening of trauma patients who revealed no spinal trauma on chest and abdominal computed tomography (CT). METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of the medical records of trauma patients who underwent conventional radiographs of the thoracolumbar spine following a chest and abdominal CT that revealed no spinal trauma. RESULTS: Two hundred seventy-five trauma patients underwent conventional radiographs of the thoracolumbar spine following a chest and abdominal CT that revealed no spinal trauma. In 274 of the cases, the thoracolumbar spine series was also negative. CONCLUSION: CT of the chest and abdomen is an adequate evaluation of the thoracolumbar spine in trauma patients who require routine thoracolumbar spine screening, making subsequent conventional radiographs of the thoracolumbar spine unnecessary.
Abdomen ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Medical Records ; Retrospective Studies ; Spine ; Thorax

PURPOSE: In this study, we retrospectively investigated the medical records of patients with facial fractures and suspected cranial injuries in order to determine if there was any relationship between various facial fracture patterns and cranial injuries. METHODS: Medical records were reviewed to identify patients diagnosed with facial fractures who underwent cranial computed tomography (CT) scans. Records were reviewed for gender, age, injury mechanism, facial fracture pattern, and presence or absence of cranial injuries. Facial fracture patterns were classified as isolated fractures (tripod, zygomatic arch, maxilla, orbit, and mandible), combined fractures, or total fractures. Cranial injuries included skull fractures, traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhages, subdural hemorrhages, epidural hemorrhages, and contusional hemorrhages. All cranial injuries were established by using cranial CT scans, and these kinds of cranial injuries were defined radiologically-proven cranial injuries (RPCIs). We evaluated the relationship between each pattern of facial fractures and the incidence of RPCIs. RESULTS: Of 132 eligible patients with facial fractures who underwent cranial CT scans, a total of 27 (20.5%) patients had RPCIs associated with facial fractures. Falls and slips were the most common causes of the fractures (31.8%), followed by assaults and motor vehicle accidents (MVAs). One hundred one (76.5%) patients had isolated facial fractures, and 31 (23.5%) patients had combined facial fractures. Fractures were found most commonly in the orbital and maxillary bones. Patients with isolated maxillary fractures had a lower incidence of RPCIs than those with total mandibular fractures. RPCIs frequently accompanied combined facial fractures. CONCLUSION: Combined facial fractures had a significant positive correlation with RPCIs. This means that facial fractures caused by stronger or multidirectional external force are likely to be accompanied by cranial injuries.
Brain Injuries ; Contusions ; Hematoma, Subdural ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mandibular Fractures ; Maxilla ; Maxillary Fractures ; Medical Records ; Motor Vehicles ; Orbit ; Retrospective Studies ; Skull Fractures ; Subarachnoid Hemorrhage, Traumatic ; Zygoma