The Role of Ultrasound in Penetrating Trauma.

A dramatic reduction of penetrating trauma is not to be expected in the near future, especially in some regions of the world. In order to identify the body structures damaged after stab or firearm wounds, complementary diagnostic studies play an essential role in assessing the severity of the case. The inclusion of ultrasound among the diagnostic tests for assessing abdominal injuries after blunt trauma because of its confident, repetitive, non-invasive, communicable, and low-cost means to obtain the relevant information is derived from rapidly widespread use of the method for other injury mechanisms, such as penetrating trauma. The excellent results in sensitivity and specificity obtained by ultrasound in the search of free fluid among patients with blunt trauma have pushed emergency physicians to try a similar implementation in the penetrating trauma setting. Ultrasonography enables experienced examiners to obtain diagnostic details from the injured patient. Regarding free fluid, it is possible to determine its presence and composition through the peritoneal aspiration after a sonoguided puncture. On the other hand, ultrasound is able to detect morphologic changes in solid organs after penetrating trauma. In order to reach these possibilities which are offered by the ultrasound technology, a planifying training and education program must be developed.