Penetrating Trauma
Terms
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- Key Points
- Monitor the airway closely in any patient with a penetrating wound to the neck.
- Ballistics
- The study of projectile motion and its interactions with the gun, the air, and the object it contacts.
- Trajectory
- The path a projectile follows.
- Drag
- The forces acting on a projectile in motion to slow its progress.
- Cavitation
- The outward motion of tissue due to a projectile's passage, resulting in a temporary cavity and vacuum.
- Profile
- The size and shape of a projectile as it contacts a target; it is the energy exchange surface of the contact.
- Caliber
- The diameter of a bullet expressed in hundredths of an inch. (.22 caliber = 0.22 inches); the inside diameter of the barrel of a handgun, shotgun, or rifle.
- Yaw
- Swing or wobble around the axis of a projectile's travel.
- Key Point
- Immobilize impaled objects in place. Only remove those that have lodged in the cheek or those that interfere with the airway or that prevent CPR.
- Factors Affecting Energy Exchange Between a Projecting and Body Tissue
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Velocity
Profile
Stability
Expansion and fragmentation
Secondary impacts
Shape - Factors Associated with the Damage Pathway of a Projectile Wound
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Direct injury
Pressure shock wave
Cavitation
Temporary cavity
Permanent cavity
Zone of injury - Resiliency
- The connective strength and elasticity of an object or fabric.
- Pericardial Tamponade
- Filling of the pericardial sac with fluid, which in turn limits the filling and function of the heart.
- Body Regions Deserving Special Attention with Penetrating Trauma
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Extremities
Abdomen
Thorax
Neck
Head - Cricothyrotomy
- A surgical incision into the cricothyroid membrane, usually to provide an emergency airway.
- Cricothyrostomy
- The introduction of a needle or other tube into the cricothyroid membrane, usually to provide an emergency airway.
- Prognosis
- The anticipated outcome of a disease or injury.