Penetrating trauma of colon, cava, and cord.

A case is presented of a young police officer shot in the abdomen, sustaining injuries to colon, cava, and cord. Each injury was surgically managed in what was felt to be an appropriate manner, with early antibiotic therapy. As complications developed, aggressive measures were taken to correct them, with some success as far as pulmonary and renal failure were concerned, but with complete inability to reverse the meningitis and cerebritis caused by E. coli, and leading to a fatal outcome.