• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.70-79
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• 2005

Background: Abdominal compartment syndrome has multiple etiologies that are not only related to trauma but also any problem condition in the absence of abdominal injury. To determine whether prevention of the abdominal compartment syndrome after celiotomy for trauma victims justifies the use of temporary abdominal coverage with monofilament knitted polypropylene mesh (Malex mesh) in severely injured patients. Method: Medical records at the Ajou University Medical Center were reviewed for a 32-month period from May 1st, 2002 to December 31st, 2004. Twenty-nine consecutive patients requiring celiotomy who were survived until at the end of celiotomy received temporary abdominal coverage and staged abdominal repairs with Malex mesh. One of them was dissecting aortic aneurysm patient and the others were all trauma victims. Malex mesh prosthesis coverage was used in cases of abdominal compartment syndrome due to excessive fascial tension, severe bowel edema and retroperitoneal hemorrhage or edema followed by staged abdominal repairs. Result: Eighteen of twenty-nine patients were survived. Demographic characteristics, injury severity number of abdominal-pelvic bone injuries, mortality rate, complications, number of operations for permanent closure, required time for permanent closure showed no difference between man and women or child and adult. Except one dissecting aortic aneurysm patient, trauma cases showed $3.24{\pm}0.98$ injury sites. All cases that received temporary abdominal coverage and staged abdominal repairs did not show abdominal compartment syndrome. $10.08{\pm}5.85$ days and $2.27{\pm}0.82$ times of operation required making permanent abdominal closure after temporary abdominal coverage followed by staged abdominal repairs. Most of surviving patients have shown antibiotic-resistant organism and fungus infection. Patients who received permanent closure recovered from infectious problem completely. Conclusion: The use of Malex mesh for temporary abdominal coverage in severely injured patients undergoing celiotomy was effective treatment method.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.111-124
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• 2013

Purpose: We should prepare proper medical service for disaster control as South Korea is not free from terrorism and war, as we experienced through the two naval battles of the Yeonpyeong, one in 1999 and the other in 2002, the sinking of Cheonan in 2010, and the attack against the border island of Yeonpyeong in 2010. Moreover, North Korea's increasingly bellicose rhetoric and mounting military threats against the world demand instant action to address the issue. The aim of this article is to describe our experience with three patients with combat-related gunshot and explosive injuries to their extremities and to establish useful methods for the management of patients with combat-related injuries. Methods: Three personnel who had been injured by gunshot or explosion during either the second naval battle of the Yeonpyeong in 2002 or the attack against the border island of Yeonpyeong in 2010 were included in our retrospective analysis. There were one case of gunshot injury and two cases of explosive injuries to the extremities, and the injured regions were the left hand, the right foot, and the right humerus. In one case, the patient had accompanying abdominal injuries, and his vital signs were unstable. He recovered after early initial management and appropriate emergency surgery. Results: All patients underwent emergent surgical debridement and temporary fixation surgery in the same military hospital immediately after their evacuations from the combat area. After that, continuous administration of antibiotics and wound care were performed, and definite reconstructions were carried out in a delayed manner. In the two cases in which flap operations for soft tissue coverage were required, one operation was performed 5 weeks after the injury, and the other operation was performed 7 weeks after the injury. Definite procedures for osteosynthesis were performed at 3 months in all cases. Complete union and adequate functional recovery were achieved in all cases. Conclusion: The patient should be stabilized and any life-threatening injuries must first be evaluated and treated with damage control surgery. Staged treatment and strict adherence to traditional principles for open fractures are recommended for combat-related gunshot and explosive injuries to the extremities.