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Review paper

Urban thoracic trauma: diagnosis and initial treatment of non-cardiac injuries in adults

By
Vasileios Leivaditis ,
Vasileios Leivaditis

Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Westpfalz Klinikum, Kaiserslautern, Germany

Athanasios Papatriantafyllou ,
Athanasios Papatriantafyllou

Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Westpfalz Klinikum, Kaiserslautern, Germany,

Ioanna Akrida ,
Ioanna Akrida

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece,

Michail Galanis ,
Michail Galanis

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

Emmanouil Dimopoulos ,
Emmanouil Dimopoulos

Department of General and Visceral Surgery, Marienhospital Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany

Anastasia Papaporfyriou ,
Anastasia Papaporfyriou

Department of Pulmonology, Internal Medicine II, Vienna University Hospital, Vienna, Austria

Benjamin Ehle ,
Benjamin Ehle

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Asklepios Lung Clinic Munich-Gauting, Gauting, Germany

Efstratios Koletsis ,
Efstratios Koletsis

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Patras University Hospital, Patras, Greece

Nikolaos Charokopos ,
Nikolaos Charokopos

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Patras University Hospital, Patras, Greece

George Pappas-Gogos ,
George Pappas-Gogos

Department of Surgery, Patras University Hospital, Patras, Greece

Francesk Mulita Orcid logo ,
Francesk Mulita
Contact Francesk Mulita

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece

Georgios-Ioannis Verras ,
Georgios-Ioannis Verras

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece

Konstantinos Tasios ,
Konstantinos Tasios

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece

Vasiliki Garantzioti ,
Vasiliki Garantzioti

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece

Levan Tchabashvili ,
Levan Tchabashvili

Department of Surgery, University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Alexandroupolis, Greece

Manfred Dahm ,
Manfred Dahm

Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Westpfalz Klinikum, Kaiserslautern, Germany

Konstantinos Grapatsas
Konstantinos Grapatsas

Department of Thoracic Surgery and Thoracic Endoscopy, Ruhrlandklinik, West German Lung Center, University Hospital Essen, University Duisburg-Essen , Essen, Germany

Abstract

This comprehensive review aims to delineate the prevailing non-cardiac thoracic injuries occurring in urban environments following initial on-site treatment and subsequent admission to hospital emergency departments. Our study involved a rigorous search within the PubMed database, employing key phrases and their combinations, including "thoracic injury," "thoracic trauma," "haemothorax," "lung contusion," "traumatic pneumothorax," "rib fractures," and "flail chest." We focused on original research articles and reviews. Non-cardiac thoracic injuries exhibit a high prevalence, often affecting poly-trauma patients, and contributing to up to 35% of polytrauma-related fatalities. Furthermore, severe thoracic injuries can result in a substantial 5% mortality rate. This review provides insights into clinical entities such as lung contusion, traumatic haemothorax, pneumothorax, rib fractures, and sternal fractures. Thoracic injuries represent a frequent and significant clinical concern for emergency department physicians and thoracic surgeons, warranting thorough understanding and timely intervention.

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