• Anthony Gebran, Abou KhalilElissaEDivision of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Hôtel Dieu de France, Saint Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon., El MohebMohamadMDivision of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, & Surgical Critical Care, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.Center for Outcomes & Patient Safety in Surgery (COMPASS), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA ., Obey Albaini, Mohamad El Warea, Rand Ibrahim, Karin Karam, El HelouMohamad OthmanMOLebanese American University Gilbert and Rose Marie Chagoury School of Medicine, LAU Medical Center-Rizk Hospital, Beirut, Lebanon., Elie P Ramly, Majed El Hechi, Ayah Matar, Jana Zeineddine, George Dabar, Al HajjAssemAClemenceau Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon., Abi SaadGeorgeGDepartment of Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon., Jamal Hoballah, Bassem Safadi, and KaafaraniHaytham M AHMADivision of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, & Surgical Critical Care, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.Center for Outcomes & Patient Safety in Surgery (COMPASS), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
• Division of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, & Surgical Critical Care, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
• Ann. Surg. 2022 Feb 1; 275 (2): 398405398-405.

ObjectiveThis multicenter study aims to describe the injury patterns, emergency management and outcomes of the blast victims, recognize the gaps in hospital disaster preparedness, and identify lessons to be learned.Summary Background DataOn August 4th, 2020, the city of Beirut, Lebanon suffered the largest urban explosion since Hiroshima and Nagasaki, resulting in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries.MethodsAll injured patients admitted to four of the largest Beirut hospitals within 72 hours of the blast, including those who died on arrival or in the emergency department (ED), were included. Medical records were systematically reviewed for: patient demographics and comorbidities; injury severity and characteristics; prehospital, ED, operative, and inpatient interventions; and outcomes at hospital discharge. Lessons learned are also shared.ResultsAn estimated total of 1818 patients were included, of which 30 died on arrival or in the ED and 315 were admitted to the hospital. Among admitted patients, the mean age was 44.7 years (range: 1 week-93 years), 44.4% were female, and the median injury severity score (ISS) was 10 (5, 17). ISS was inversely related to the distance from the blast epicenter (r = --0.18, P = 0.035). Most injuries involved the upper extremities (53.7%), face (42.2%), and head (40.3%). Mildly injured (ISS <9) patients overwhelmed the ED in the first 2 hours; from hour 2 to hour 8 post-injury, the number of moderately, severely, and profoundly injured patients increased by 127%, 25% and 17%, respectively. A total of 475 operative procedures were performed in 239 patients, most commonly soft tissue debridement or repair (119 patients, 49.8%), limb fracture fixation (107, 44.8%), and tendon repair (56, 23.4%). A total of 11 patients (3.5%) died during the hospitalization, 56 (17.8%) developed at least 1 complication, and 51 (16.2%) were discharged with documented long-term disability. Main lessons learned included: the importance of having key hospital functions (eg, laboratory, operating room) underground; the nonadaptability of electronic medical records to disasters; the ED overwhelming with mild injuries, delay in arrival of the severely injured; and the need for realistic disaster drills.ConclusionsWe, therefore, describe the injury patterns, emergency flow and trauma outcome of patients injured in the Beirut port explosion. The clinical and system-level lessons learned can help prepare for the next disaster.Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

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