Femoral vessel injuries in modern warfare since Vietnam

The incidence of lower extremity injuries is high in modern warfare; however the mortality rate from these injuries is low. Despite the overall low mortality of lower extremity injuries, many deaths in modern conflicts are due to femoral vessel injury. The modern warfare literature was reviewed. In...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Military medicine 2003-09, Vol.168 (9), p.733-735
Main Authors: PEARL, Jonathan P, MCNALLY, Michael P, PERDUE, Philip W
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amputation
Armed forces
Biological and medical sciences
Femoral Artery - injuries
Hemorrhage
Humans
Injuries
Leg Injuries - epidemiology
Medical sciences
Military Personnel
Mortality
Persian Gulf War
Traumas. Diseases due to physical agents
Vascular injuries: limbs, aorta, vena cava
Veins & arteries
Warfare
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Summary:The incidence of lower extremity injuries is high in modern warfare; however the mortality rate from these injuries is low. Despite the overall low mortality of lower extremity injuries, many deaths in modern conflicts are due to femoral vessel injury. The modern warfare literature was reviewed. In Somalia, 1 of the 14 reported deaths was due to a laceration of the superficial femoral artery. In the Persian Gulf, three deaths were reported in an Army field hospital, one resulted from uncontrolled hemorrhage from a profunda femoris artery wound and two others resulted from traumatic amputations with consequent major arterial injury. Despite the advances in modern body armor, the groin is left unprotected. A strategy to help minimize U.S. casualties in modern warfare may be a method of field hemostasis specifically designed for femoral vessel injury.
ISSN:0026-4075
1930-613X
DOI:10.1093/milmed/168.9.733