Blunt trauma and Rx of specific injuries

Abstract

There are several differences between blunt and penetrating trauma injuries: Penetrating abdominal trauma is made obvious by the presence of a wound. Blunt abdominal trauma is sometimes unequivocally identifiable by the presence of a visible contusion of the abdominal wall (e.g., seat belt sign), but more frequently, it is only suspected from the mechanism of injury. Penetrating abdominal trauma is usually confined to the abdomen. Common mechanisms of blunt trauma (vehicle accidents, falls, beatings, etc.) often result in polytrauma, the abdominal component being associated with other cavity or system injuries (head, chest, pelvis, vertebral column, long bones). The patterns of intra-abdominal visceral injuries are different. Hollow viscera injuries are common in penetrating trauma. They are very rare in blunt trauma, where solid organ injuries (to liver, spleen, pancreas) predominate. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010.