BACKGROUND: Transmediastinal gunshot wounds are associated with a high mortality and frequently require operative intervention. The purpose of this study was to identify the diagnostic and therapeutic challenges of these injuries in a mature trauma system with decreasing prehospital time intervals. METHODS: Patients admitted to a large urban Level 1 trauma centre between 1/2006 and 12/2010 sustaining a firearm injury to the torso were identified. Transmediastinal gunshot wounds were defined as missile tracts traversing the mediastinum identified on CT images, operative notes or autopsy reports. RESULTS: Overall, 133 patients met study criteria. A total of 116 patients (87.2%) were haemodynamically unstable or had no vital signs on arrival to the Emergency Department. Ninety-seven (83.6%) of these patients required a resuscitative thoracotomy resulting in 8 survivors (6.0%). There were 17 haemodynamically stable patients (12.8%) identified, 14 of whom underwent CT scan evaluation. Six patients subsequently required operative intervention. Only 11 patients (8.3%) in the study population were successfully managed nonoperatively. The overall mortality was 78.9%, and for those who reached the hospital with vital signs, the mortality was 24.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Transmediastinal gunshot wounds encountered in a mature trauma centre are highly lethal injuries requiring resuscitative thoracotomy in most instances. Changing perspectives in these injuries may reflect the effects of an evolving prehospital care.
BACKGROUND: Transmediastinal gunshot wounds are associated with a high mortality and frequently require operative intervention. The purpose of this study was to identify the diagnostic and therapeutic challenges of these injuries in a mature trauma system with decreasing prehospital time intervals. METHODS:Patients admitted to a large urban Level 1 trauma centre between 1/2006 and 12/2010 sustaining a firearm injury to the torso were identified. Transmediastinal gunshot wounds were defined as missile tracts traversing the mediastinum identified on CT images, operative notes or autopsy reports. RESULTS: Overall, 133 patients met study criteria. A total of 116 patients (87.2%) were haemodynamically unstable or had no vital signs on arrival to the Emergency Department. Ninety-seven (83.6%) of these patients required a resuscitative thoracotomy resulting in 8 survivors (6.0%). There were 17 haemodynamically stable patients (12.8%) identified, 14 of whom underwent CT scan evaluation. Six patients subsequently required operative intervention. Only 11 patients (8.3%) in the study population were successfully managed nonoperatively. The overall mortality was 78.9%, and for those who reached the hospital with vital signs, the mortality was 24.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Transmediastinal gunshot wounds encountered in a mature trauma centre are highly lethal injuries requiring resuscitative thoracotomy in most instances. Changing perspectives in these injuries may reflect the effects of an evolving prehospital care.