WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
\.3 questions to ask in trauma - Answer- -what was the dose of energy?
-where did it go?
-what injuries are likely?
\.2 q's to ask in GSW - Answer- caliber
type of gun
# of entrance/exit wounds
high/low velocity
\.1st question to ask in any traumatic injury? - Answer- what was the dose of energy
involved?
(was it high or low?)
\.what is the caliber of a bullet? - Answer- diameter
\.aka diameter of a bullet - Answer- caliber
\.what happens to projectiles when they enter the body - Answer- projectiles don't travel in a
straight line
consider temporary cavity wound
,\.what should you consider about tissue a projectile enounters - Answer- temporary
cavitation
\.primary goal of GSW surgery - Answer- usually damage repair & not bullet removal
-if superficial, it may migrate the surface with time
\.important thing to remember about retained projectiles - Answer- they may migrate over
time. bullett migration might explain unexplained clinical findings
(VP Cheney accidentally shot his friend while hunting in 2006. ICU and did great. moved to an
inpatient unit. had a silent MI bc a shot gun pellets migrated into a canary artery causing an
infract. so had a MI but fibrinolytic not the answer in this case b/c it was a "projectile embolus"
\.aka brestbone - Answer- sternum
\.what attaches the ribs to the sternum - Answer- cartliage
\.what breaks thoracic bones - Answer- significant force
-1-2nd ribs, posterior ribs, sternum, scapulae, T2-10
gives us info about the force aka "dose" of energy received
consider injury to internal structures b/c force
\.ribs that are the most frequently broken - Answer- ribs 4-9 b/c long, thin, and poorly
protecte
it is harder to break a short pencil (T1-2) and easier to break a longer one
*ask how many and where to understand the force involved
\.what is the significance of posterior rib fractures - Answer- unusual direction of injury
,shorter stubby ribs
good muscle profection
**posterior rib fractures have a lot of force so need a high dose.
***PRF need a lot of force so high dose of energy. big red flag for t-spine injury
\.indication of c-spine injury - Answer- to injure c-spine, you don't need a big energy blow. all
it takes is shaking around.
\.c spine versus t spine fractures - Answer- c-spine doesn't need a big energy blow. just some
shaking around
t-spine needs a great strong direct blow (not just a shock_
\.treatment for rib fractures - Answer- largely supportive nursing care like pulmonary toilet
\.CXR and rib fractures - Answer- simple rib fractures are difficult to see on CXR and can be
commonly missed
(1/2 of all rib fractures aren't identified at the POI CXR)
\.identify a previous rib fracture on CXR - Answer- once healed, rib fractures form bony
callouses and become more visible on CXR
\.how to tell a pt has a pneumonia from a CXR - Answer- dark spot that is not equal to the
opposite side
\.consider if a pt has a lower rib fracture - Answer- liver & spleen injury
acts like BBQ/marshmellow skewers
, \.how high does the diaphragm rise on inspiration - Answer- level of 4th ICS
\.risk of rib fractures - Answer- can puncture liver, spleen,, diaphragm
pop lungs
\.+2 adjacent rib fractures - Answer- flail chest
\.free floating sternum - Answer- flail chest
\.definition of flail chest - Answer- +2 adjacent rib fracture
free floating sternum
\.why is flail chest a problem - Answer- b/c breathing is a mechanical process
\.paradoxical chest movements - Answer- in flail chest
\.s/s of flail chest - Answer- paradoxical chest wall movement
\.where on the tissue oxygenation cascade is thoracic cage fractures a problem - Answer-
ventilation
\.parameters to assess ventilation - Answer- ETCO2, PaCO2, clinical assessment