Abstract
The treatment of patients with multiple injuries changed considerably in the 1970s with the introduction of early fracture fixation. A number of studies showed the value of early femoral fracture fixation in particular, however, and surgeons quickly adopted the philosophy of early total care, fixing all major fractures as soon as possible after admission. This philosophy was challenged in the 1990s by surgeons who pointed out that early time-consuming surgery was not appropriate for all patients, particularly those who were very seriously injured or who presented with severe chest or head trauma. Thus, the concept of damage control surgery was initiated, and this philosophy is widely followed today.
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© 2013 Springer-Verlag London
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Bhagat, S., Shah, B.M. (2013). Polytrauma. In: Iyer, K. (eds) Trauma Management in Orthopedics. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-4462-5_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-4462-5_1
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