Acute laryngeal trauma: a comparison between peace time and war injuries

Differences in acute external injuries of the larynx and cervical trachea between peace-time and war trauma were studied. Twenty-six patients with peace-time injuries and 39 patients with war injuries were retrospectively analyzed. The incidence of peace-time laryngotracheal injuries was 0.91% of the total number of patients hospitalized for head and neck injuries. In the groups of wounded in action (WIA) and killed in action (KIA) with head and neck war injuries, the incidence of laryngotracheal injuries was 4.8 and 6.2%, respectively. According to the type of the wound, blunt injuries were most common among peace-time and penetrating wounds among war injuries. There was no difference between peace-time and war injuries according to the wound localization. War wounds were more severe, caused more extensive local tissue and organ defects, were associated with a greater number of lesions to the neck and other body regions and more often required reconstructive surgical procedures than peace-time injuries. The mortality of war laryngotracheal injuries was two times greater than that of peace-time lesions (9 vs. 3.8%).

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