J Trauma
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The impact on respiratory function of gunshot injuries to the chest is unknown. The objective is to assess pulmonary function and respiratory muscle strength (RMS) in patients who have recently sustained an isolated gunshot injury to the chest. ⋯ Lung volumes and RMS are decreased moderately to severely in patients who have sustained an isolated pulmonary gunshot wound. Expiratory muscle force generation is more severely affected than inspiratory muscle force. Further investigation of the long-term impact of these injuries on respiratory function is warranted.
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Controlled Clinical Trial
Implementing and evaluating an injury prevention curriculum within a pediatric residency program.
Many pediatric residency programs struggle to incorporate injury prevention training into their curricula. ⋯ An injury prevention curriculum for pediatric residents can significantly increase and sustain their fund of knowledge on these important topics.
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Falls from height are considered to be high risk for multisystem injury. Ground-level falls (GLF) are often deemed a low-energy mechanism of injury (MOI) and not a recommended triage criterion for trauma team activation. We hypothesize that in elderly patients, a GLF may represent a high-risk group for injury and concurrent comorbidities that warrant trauma service evaluation and should be triaged appropriately. ⋯ Patients older than 70 years and with GCS score <15 represent a group with significant inhospital mortality.
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Comparative Study
A comparative analysis of serious injury and illness among homeless and housed low income residents of New York City.
Delivery of effective primary, secondary, and tertiary injury prevention in homeless populations is complex and could be greatly aided by an improved understanding of contributing factors. ⋯ Although homelessness presents unique, highly complex social and health issues that tend to overshadow the need for and the value of injury prevention, this study highlights potentially fruitful areas for primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.
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The ability to detect damage to the intervertebral structures is critical in the management of patients after blunt trauma. A practical and inexpensive method to identify severe structural damage not clearly seen on computed tomography would be of benefit. The objective of this study was to assess whether ligamentous injury in the subaxial cervical spine can be reliably detected by analysis of lateral radiographs taken with and without axial traction. ⋯ This study supports further clinical investigations to determine whether low-level axial traction may be a useful adjunct for detecting unstable subaxial cervical spine injuries in an acute setting.