J Trauma
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To ascertain morbidity and disability associated with vigorous attempts at limb salvage after lower extremity combined orthopedic and arterial injuries we reviewed more than 10,000 trauma admissions. Twenty-two patients (0.2%) suffered 14 blunt and eight penetrating lower extremity orthoarterial injuries. In all, more than 90 extremity operations were performed within 30 days of admission. ⋯ Tremendous effort was expended to achieve limb salvage in the patients of this review. Patients who underwent amputation had the more uneventful hospitalizations and the lower rates of disability. The notion that limb salvage need to be obtained in all patients at all costs may often lead to the triumph of technique and technology over reason.