Zeitschrift für Trauma und Behandlung

Blast Injuries and Wound Ballistics: A Mini Review

Abstract

Alberto Carlino* and Cian Mark

While gunshot and explosive wounds are most commonly seen during battlefield fighting, they are no longer uncommon in civilian practise in France. The interaction of the projectile with the human body, as well as the transmission of energy from the projectile to tissues, is the foundations of wound ballistics. Ballistic wounds are treated using a number of approaches, including debridement of the extremity wound and the lack of initial closure, additional medical care, routine immobilisation, revision surgery, and secondary closure. Because injuries are directly or indirectly related to the shock wave (blast) emerging from the explosion, victims of explosions frequently present with a complex clinical picture.