• Dror Lakstein, Amir Blumenfeld, Tali Sokolov, Guy Lin, Roni Bssorai, Mauricio Lynn, and Ron Ben-Abraham.
• Israel Defense Force Medical Corps, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
• J Trauma. 2003 May 1;54(5 Suppl):S221-5.

BackgroundTourniquet application is a known means for bleeding prevention in the military prehospital setting.MethodsThis study was a 4-year retrospective analysis of silicone and improvised tourniquet applications by Israeli Defense Force soldiers.ResultsOf 550 soldiers who were treated in the prehospital setting, tourniquets were applied to 91 (16%) patients and in less than 15 minutes in 88% of the cases with almost no complications. Penetrating trauma was the main mechanism of injury. The indication was situational and nonmedical in 58 (53%) of the cases. The patients' ischemic time was 83 +/- 52 minutes (range, 1-305 minutes). A total of 78% of applications were effective, with higher success rates for medical staff compared with fellow soldiers and for upper limbs (94%) compared with lower limbs (71%, p < 0.01).ConclusionTourniquet application is an effective and easily applied (by medical and nonmedical personnel) method for prevention of exsanguination in the military prehospital setting.

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