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06-13-2012, 11:02 AM
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Emergency Thoracotomy
Thoracic trauma is a leading causes of death in all age groups and accounts for 25-50% of all traumatic injuries. Most thoracic trauma patients require only conservative management, but a subset of these patients will deteriorate in the pre-hospital environment or in the emergency department and require an emergency thoracotomy. "Emergency thoracotomy can be defined as thoracotomy “occurring either immediately at the site of injury, or in the emergency department or operating room as an integral part of the resuscitation process”. When to perform an emergency thoracotomy is controversial. Some experts describe emergency thoracotomy as a ‘futile’ procedure, with survival rates around 9-12% for penetrating trauma. Yet some institutions report survival rates up to 38%. Blunt chest trauma on the other hand has a survival rate following cardiac arrest of only 1-2%. Good video |