• Journal of Trauma and Injury
• /
• v.23 no.2
• /
• pp.102-106
• /
• 2010

Purpose: With the increasing numbers of foreign residents in Korea, the need for an emergency medical care system for foreign patients seems to be growing. Sometimes, a foreigner admitted to an emergency room is not treated sufficiently due to the absence of insurance, facility in the Korean language, and a guardian. The management of a foreigner with trauma in the ER is difficult due to various problems such as social and economic status. The purpose of this study was to investigate the current management status of foreigners with penetrating wounds in the emergency room. Methods: This study is an analysis of 580 patients that were diagnosed with penetrating wounds in one teaching Hospital from Jan. 1, 2008 to Dec. 31, 2008. We analyzed results according to nationality, alcohol ingestion, intentional or accidental trauma, trauma mechanism, injury severity, management time in the ER, and outcome in the ER. Results: Of the total 580 patients, 486 patients (83.8%) were native Koreans and 94 patients (16.2%) were foreigners. According to the Revised Trauma Score, the average score of native Korean patients was 7.808, and the average score of foreign patients was 7.638. Of native Korean patients, 22.6% had knife wounds while 38.3% of foreign patients did. Of native Korean patients, 17.3% experienced intentional trauma while 33.0% of the foreign patients did. Of native Korean patients, 22.5% had ingested alcohol while 49.4% of the foreigners had. Of native Korean patients, 10.5% were admitted while 7.6% of the foreign patients were. Of native Korean patients, 14.2% were discharged against medical advice (DAMA), while 18.5% of foreign patients were. Of native Korean patients, 1.2% ran away while 8.7% of the foreign patients did. Conclusion: Stabbing was the most common cause of penetrating wounds in foreigner patients in this study. Intentional trauma was more common in foreigners with penetrating wounds than in native Koreans. The severity was higher in foreigners with penetrating wounds than it was in native Koreans, and patients who ran away or were discharged against medical advice were more commonly foreigners with penetrating wounds. Social insurance or policy is needed for the management of foreigners with penetrating wounds.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.3-12
• /
• 1982

Although most patients with penetrating injuries can be managed successfully with early tube thoracotomy, blood volume replacement & close observation, the remainder can be saved only by an aggressive operative intervention. From January 1959, to August 1980, 176 cases with penetrating injuries had been treated at the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, National Medical Center. The ratio of male to female patient of penetrating chest wounds was 4.3:1 in male predominance and age from 10 to 40 occupied 76.7% of the total cases. Stab wounds was the most common penetrating injuries and followed by gunshot & glass wounds. To prevent early complications of penetrating chest injuries, thoracentesis were done in 29 cases [16%], and closed thoractomy in 40 cases [22.7%]. Open thoractomy, however, had to be done in 37 cases [21%] because of massive bleeding, hemopericardium, foreign body.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.89-92
• /
• 2006

Penetrating facial wounds are uncommon and are usually life threatening because of the possibility of brain damage. There are three possible pathways for penetrating the cranium through the orbit: via the orbital roof, via the superior orbital fissure, or between the optic canal and lateral wall of the orbit. Brain injuries resulting from the penetrating wounds show extensive parenchymal damage, hemorrhage, and brain edema. Transorbital penetrating wounds can lead to diverse lesions of the optical apparatus, including the eye globe, the optical nerve, and the chiasm. Moreover, intracerebral structures may be hurt, and bleeding and infection may occur. Early diagnosis and prompt debridement are the fundamental factors affecting the outcome of a penetrating facial wound. An 87-year-old man was admitted to the emergency department with a grinder impacted into the medial aspect of the right eye. On presentation, the man was fully conscious with a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15 and complained of a visual disturbance of the right eye. Computed tomography demonstrated a right orbital medial and inferior wall fracture, a frontal bone fracture, and a contusional hemorrhage in frontal lobe of the brain. A craniotomy with hematoma removal and repair of the orbital floor was done. He showed no neurological deficits except right visual loss. This appears to be the first report of a man with a penetrating facial wound caused by a grinder, who presented with a potentially disastrous craniocerebral injury that did not lead to any serious neurological seguelae.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.189-194
• /
• 1973

A cardiac injury is one of the most dramatic and demanding emergencies than may be cared by the surgeon. Four patients who sustained penetrating wound of the heart have been experienced in the Depart-ment of Thoracic Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital. They were 3 males and one female. The age was between 21 and 25. All of this series had stab wounds on the heart by instruments of scissors, gimlet, kitchen knife and glass. Injured sites were two cases of right ventricle, one of the right atrium and one of indifinitive with pericardial laceration. Three of these patients have been successfully treated by emergency thoracotomy with 3-0 silk sutures for myocardial penetrating wounds. One of these patients occurred cardiac arrest during surgery and expired, who was in penetrated right ventricular injury through which massive bleeded. The classic clinical description of tamponade, Beck`s triad, seemed to be useful for making diagnosis of the tamponade but not entirely reliable as diagnostic criterion of the tamponade. In the studing of 3 tamponade cases in these series, the triad of Beck was presented in only two cases. Elevated venous pressure was thought to be a valuable diagnostic factor in pericardial tamponade.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.352-359
• /
• 1985

A clinical evaluation was performed on 811 cases of chest trauma who were admitted and treated at the department of thoracic & cardiovascular surgery, Catholic Medical College, during the past 19 years from Jan. 1966 to Dec. 1984. 1. The overall incidence rate of male to female was 3:1. 2. The common age groups were 4th, 5th, and 3rd decades. 3. The most common cause of chest trauma was stab in penetrating wound and traffic accidents in non penetrating wound. 4. The most common injury from non penetrating chest trauma was rib fracture [81.3%], and the incidence rate of flail chest was 14.5% of all cases of rib fractures. 5. The incidence rate of hemo-pneumothorax was 50.4% in non penetrating wounds, and 55.2% in penetrating wounds. 6. The most common method of surgical treatment was CTD [33.5%], and open thoracotomy was performed in 67 cases [8.3%]. 7, The overall mortality was 3.3% [27 cases], and common causes of the death were shock and respiratory insufficiency.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.23-30
• /
• 1974

During the 35 month period from November 1966 to November 1967 and from June 1971 to March 1973 I had experienced 127 cases of non fatal wounds of chest in Viet-Nam. .Among these 127 cases, 62[45.4%] were gun shot wounds, 49[35.8%] were shrapnel wounds and the other were traffic accident. stab wounds and miscellanous. Approximately 21% of gun shot wound were perforating and 79% were penetrating but all cases of shrapnel wounds were penetrating. Of these 127 cases. 90% evacuated to hospital within 6 hours and average time 2.5 hours. The tranfusion requirement of these cases ranged from zero to 36 pints of whole blood with an average of 2.600cc. Initial intrathoracic findings were hemopneumothorax and hemothorax mostly. and the incidence of open thoracotomy was 9.5%[12cases] and closed thoracotomy was 82.8%[104cases], which were contrast to the reports from Korean conflict. I had experienced 24 cases with complication, such as large hematoma in lung parenchyme[8 cases], atelectasis[4 cases], pyothorax [3 cases], pneumonia [3 cases], fibrothorax [3 cases], pleural effusion [2 cases] and wound infection [2 cases]. Mortality rate for entire group was 4.7% but the cases associated with brain injury was 100%, with spinal cord injury was 50%, with large vessel 50%, and abdominal injury was 33.3%, and nobody died solely of thoracic injury.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.57 no.1
• /
• pp.87-91
• /
• 2024

Gunshot-induced chest trauma is exceedingly rare among civilians in South Korea due to strong firearm control policies. In contrast to military reports emphasizing the use of emergent open thoracotomy to increase chances of survival, most penetrating non-cardiac injuries in civilian settings are managed conservatively, such as through chest tube insertion, as they typically result from lower-energy bullets. However, early surgical intervention for penetrating gunshot wounds can help reduce delayed fatalities caused by septic complications from pneumonia or empyema. The advent of minimally invasive thoracic surgery has provided cost-effective and relatively non-invasive treatment options, aided in the prevention of potential complications from undrained hematomas, and facilitated functional recovery and reintegration into society. We successfully treated a patient with a penetrating gunshot wound to the chest using video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• v.48 no.4
• /
• pp.295-300
• /
• 2018

This report presents a clinical case of trauma due to assault with a knife, and describes the importance of using the correct imaging modality in cases of facial penetrating trauma involving the superficial and deep anatomical planes. Penetrating wounds in the maxillofacial region are rare and poorly reported, but can result in serious complications that are difficult to resolve and may compromise the patient's quality of life, especially when large blood vessels or other vital structures are involved. Thus, it is essential to determine the extent of the affected blood vessels and the proximity of the retained object to the anatomical structures. In this case, digital subtraction angiography was the imaging modality chosen. The use of appropriate imaging examinations allows a proper map of the surgical field, reducing the chances of vascular damage during the surgical procedure.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
• /
• v.41 no.1
• /
• pp.16-21
• /
• 2007

Objective : Civilian gunshot injuries to the brain are relatively rare and study of these injuries has been neglected in South Korea. We present our experience with penetrating gunshot injuries to the brain and review the outcome of surgical management, as well as other clinical predictors influencing the prognosis. Methods : We present a retrospective analysis of 13 patients with penetrating gunshot injuries to the brain who were treated at our hospital over a period of 22 years. Results : The Glasgow Coma Scale[GCS] score on admission was recorded to be : 3-5 in 1 patient, 6-8 in 3 patients, 9-12 in 2 patients and 13-15 in 7 patients. There were 11 patients who underwent surgical treatment, and the surgical mortality rate was 0%. The admission GCS score was the most valuable prognostic factor. The best results were found to be in patients admitted with an initial GCS higher than 13. There were no favorable outcomes in patients admitted with a GCS of 8 or lower. There was a correlation between the presence of a transventricular or bihemispheric trajectory and poor outcome. The patients admitted with unilobar wounds resulted in better outcome than those with bilobar or multilobar wounds. Retained deep intracranial bone or metal fragments were the most common postoperative complication. However, retained fragments did not increase the risk of infection or seizure. Conclusion : Our results suggest that a less aggressive approach, consisting of minimal local debridement and removal of the bone and metal fragments that are easily accessible, can be successfully used in civilian gunshot wounds to the brain.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.131-138
• /
• 2022

Other than gunshot injuries, sacral penetrating injuries with a foreign body exiting to the other side are extremely rare. We encountered a case of sacral injury in which a long metallic pipe penetrated from the anus into the lower back of a patient. Since the pelvis contains various organs, management of a penetrating injury requires multidisciplinary treatment involving several medical specialties. Due to the infrequency of this type of injury, there are no definitive guidelines for effective management. We described our experience surgically treating a sacral penetrating injury and conducted a literature review. On this basis, we suggest a surgical strategy for treating this type of injury.