Abstract
Thoracic trauma is the third most common cause of death in trauma patients. Thoracic trauma can lead to injuries such as tension pneumothorax, massive parenchymal bleeding, or fail-chest with respiratory insufficiency. In most cases, conservative treatment with chest tube insertion is sufficient to stabilize the patient. Early identification of parenchymal, airway and/or chest wall lesions is mandatory to avoid life-threatening complications in these high-risk surgical patients. Airway-related injuries in complex chest trauma patients are associated with high mortality rates and the prognosis is poor mostly because of the concomitant injuries. Rib fracture osteosynthesis should be considered in all patients with flail chest and in patients with multiple fractures or in severe (bicortical) displaced fractures.
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Koryllos, A., Bastian, KM., Ludwig, C. (2023). Updates in the Management of Complex Chest Trauma. In: Aseni, P., Grande, A.M., Leppäniemi, A., Chiara, O. (eds) The High-risk Surgical Patient. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17273-1_67
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