Introduction: War injuries vary in severity, ranging from minor injuries to severe damage to tissues and structures. This study investigates the etiology, intricacies, and interventions for war injuries in patients admitted to the trauma emergency department of Baqiyatallah Hospital.
Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients injured in the war and treated at Baqiyatallah Hospital between April 2016 and March 2019. The study encompassed patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) and all injured patients, except those with insufficient medical records or those that were inaccessible due to death or other conditions. Collected data includes demographic characteristics, etiology, location of the injury, severity, surgeries performed, length of hospital stay, and any associated injuries or complications. The data was analyzed using the SPSS version 26.0 software.
Results: The study included patients with a mean age of 28.73 ± 9.10 years and a mean BMI of 24.56 ± 2.67. Cervical damage was the most prevalent spinal injury, occurring in 13 individuals (25%), whereas sacral damage was the least prevalent, affecting only two patients (3.8%). Gunshot wounds were the primary etiology of SCI in 44 cases (84.6%), and surgical complications were observed in 27 patients (51.9%). Most injuries (67.3%) were classified as open wounds, with GUSTILO 2 being the most common type (65.4%). The treatment options included no surgery in 15 patients (28.8%), anterior spinal fusion (ASF) in 6 patients (11.5%), posterior spinal fusion (PSF) in 16 patients (30.8%), and a combination of ASF and PSF in 4 patients (7.7%). Among the patients, the most prevalent form of spinal injury was a burst fracture, which was detected in 12 individuals (23.1%). A significant complication decrease was observed following the treatment (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Gunshot wounds to the cervical spine can result in burst fractures and neurosensory problems. PSF surgery is the most common treatment, which has demonstrated a substantial reduction in complications.