Assessment of bullet disruption in armed conflicts

Clinical and legal significance of fragmentation of bullets in relation to size of wounds: retrospective analysis

“…The proportion of M2 wounds seen in four Red Cross hospitals in a previous study is higher than reported here 14. In that study, data were collected by retrospective review of radiographs.…”

“…It is an anatomical classification alone and does not include a physiological variable. In a clinical setting this classification has been used to document the incidence of bullet disruption in armed conflict14 and the categories of wounds caused to civilians by hand grenades20 and to establish the size of wounds inflicted by conventional weapons 1…”

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Lessons from its Experience of War Surgery

“…Wound Classification (25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30) "Treat the wound not the weapon". Recognition that wound management is determined by the wound severity (i.e., both by the structures involved and more importantly by the overall size of the wound) rather than by the weapon or presumed missile velocity has led to the formulation of the Red Cross Classification of War Wounds (25).…”

“…An important application of this Classification is in assessing whether one or both sides of a conflict are using ammunition that contravenes the Hague Declaration of 1899, which specifically forbids the use of small arms ammunition that disrupts in the body after impact to cause unnecessarily severe wounds (27)(28).…”