Electrocardiograms in Traumatic Shock in Man.

As traumatic shock develops, cardiac output falls. There are several fairly well-established explanations for this. It is usually stated, however, that this diminishing output is due to phenomena arising outside of the heart and that the heart itself remains unimpaired until very late. We had hoped to obtain evidence that would, insofar as could be judged by electrocardiograms, give information clearly for or against this view. It was thought likely that as a result of the inadequate circulating blood volume, the lowered blood pressure, and the compensatory tachycardia, the coronary circulation might suffer to an extent recognizable by electrocardiogram. We are recording herewith observations on a series of 58 electrocardiograms obtained on 30 seriously-wounded soldiers in traumatic shock. The tracings were assembled at the 94th Evacuation Hospital in February and March of 1944, during the operations on the Cassino Front, and