[no abstract available]

The era of global terrorism and asymmetric warfare heralded by the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States have blurred the traditional lines between civilian and military trauma. The lessons learned by physicians in the theaters of war, particularly regarding the response to mass casualties, blast and fragmentation injuries, and resuscitation of casualties in austere environments, like...

background: exposure to chemical warfare gases significantly changes the quality of life (qol) of victims and has significant chronic adverse effects. objective: this study sought to assess the health-related qol (hrqol) of chemical victims by means of a tool specifically designed for this purpose. the correlation of their qol with several demographic factors was evaluated as well. patients and...

Sulphur mustard is a vesicant (blistering agent), which produces chemical burns with widespread blistering. It was used extensively as a chemical warfare agent in the First World War, and has allegedly been employed in a number of conflicts since then, most recently by Iraq against Iran (1984-1987). The potential further use of mustard in military conflicts and by terrorists remains a significa...

The French word "trier", the origin of the word "triage", was originally applied to a process of sorting, probably around 1792, by Baron Dominique Jean Larrey, Surgeon in Chief to Napoleon's Imperial Guard. Larrey was credited with designing a flying ambulance: the Ambulance Volante. Baron Francois Percy also contributed to the organisation of a care system for the ongoing management of casualt...

Between 1945 and 1992, there were more than 149 major wars, killing more than 23 million people. Children have, of course, always been caught up in warfare. They usually have little choice but to experience, at minimum, the same horrors as their parentsas casualties or even combatants. Recent developments in warfare have significantly heightened the dangers for children. It is, during the last ...

Blast and fragment injuries are the most frequently encountered wounds in modern warfare. Explosive devices have become the preferred weapon of domestic and foreign terrorists because they are relatively inexpensive to manufacture and can cause substantial casualties. Although blast injuries have traditionally been associated with the battlefield, this type of trauma is being seen more commonly...

Previous studies have demonstrated that rapid evacuation, disrobing and emergency decontamination can enhance the ability of emergency services and acute hospitals to effectively manage chemically-contaminated casualties. The purpose of this human volunteer study was to further optimise such an "Initial Operational Response" by (1) identifying an appropriate method for performing improvised ski...