• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.328-330
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• 1994

Brachial plexus injury developing after axillary thoracotomy is an uncommon complication. But if it occurs, it may cause annoying events. We recently experienced 2 patients who developed brachial plexus injury after wedge resection by axillary thoracotomy . The first patient was a 22 year-old man with right spontaneous pneumothorax . After wedge resection of the right upper lung by axillary thoracotomy, he complained total paralysis of the right arm. An electromyogram was obtained at 7 days after operation, with the confirmation of brachial plexus injury. He was discharged at 22days after operation and brachial plexus injury was completely recovered 4 months after discharge. The second patient was a 17 year-old man with recurrent right pneumothorax. He underwent wedge resection of the right upper lung by axillary thoracotomy. Electromyogram confirmed the diagnosis of brachial plexus injury in the immediate postoperative period. He was discharged at 15 days after operation and brachial plexus injury was recovered 2months after discharge.Brachial plexus injury after axillary thoracotomy is caused by stretching around the clavicle and tendon of pectoralis minor by fixation of the abducted arm to the frame. Thus, when we perform wedge resection by axillary thoracotomy, we must avoid over-stretching of the brachial plexus in positioning. If brachial plexus injury develops, immediate attention and management with close rapport are important to avoid possible medicolegal problems.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.118-122
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• 2022

The usual cause of penetrating thoracoabdominal injuries with evisceration are stab wounds with knives and other sharp weapons used during fights and conflicts. Evisceration of the abdominal viscera as a result of trauma, with its attendant morbidity and mortality, requires early intervention. Gunshot wounds can also cause penetrating thoracoabdominal injuries. We report the case of a 52-year-old male patient, a worker at a timber-processing factory, who was assaulted with a chainsaw by his colleague following a disagreement. He was seen at the accident and emergency department of Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, Nigeria with a thoracoabdominal injury about 1.5 hours after the attack. He had a left thoracoabdominal laceration with abdominal evisceration and an open left pneumothorax. He was managed operatively, made a full recovery, and was discharged 16 days after admission. He was readmitted 4 months after the initial surgery with acute intestinal obstruction secondary to adhesions. He underwent exploratory laparotomy and adhesiolysis. He made an uneventful recovery and was discharged on the 9th postoperative day for subsequent follow-up.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.65-70
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• 2009

Purpose: Many studies have addressed a psychiatric analysis of self-injury patients who have self-injurious behavior and who have attempted suicide. Few studies on the injury characteristics of self-injury related trauma patients have been conducted. We analyzed the injury characteristics of self-injury patients. Methods: A retrospective review of the medical records extracted from the injury surveillance system of Wonju Christian Hospital for the period from August 2006 to February 2008 was conducted. Of the 121 cases extracted, 103 were included in this study. We analyzed the sex ratio, age group, place of injury, injury mechanism, location of injury, management results, injury severity, and relation with drinking. Results: One hundred three cases were included (sex ratio: 1.06), and the mean age was $33.9{\pm}14.2$ years old. Fifty-six patients (54.4%) were discharged from the emergency department (ED) on the day of injury after primary care, and 9 patients (8.7%) were discharged, because they refused treatment. Seven patients (6.8%) died. Of these, 4 patients (3.9%) died after attempted cardio-pulmonary resuscitation in the ED, 1 patient (1%) was dead on arrival, and 2 patients (1.9%) died after admission. Sixteen patients (15.5%) were admitted to the hospital, including 2 patients (1.9%) needing emergency surgery. Sixteen patients (15.5%) were transferred to other hospitals. Sixty-one cases (59.2%) involved drinking, and 31 (30.1%) did not; for 11 cases (10.7%), the involvement of drinking was unknown. The mean revised trauma score (RTS) was $11.26{\pm}2.52$, and 88 cases (85.4%) hat a RTS of 12. The mean injury severity score (ISS) was $5.80{\pm}14.56$, and 9 (8.7%) severely injured patients had scores of more than 15. Conclusion: Most self-injuries were mild traumas related to drinking and occurred at a young age. Most cases were not so severe, and the patients were discharged from the ED, but some patients needed hospitalization. Other patients had injuries so severe that they died.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.51-54
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• 2017

We here report a case of long-term fistula formation due to bullet retention for 30 years in the lumbar spine after a gunshot injury, and describe its treatment. A 62-year-old male visited our hospital due to pus-like discharge from his left flank. The discharge had been present for 30 years, since his recovery from an abdominal gunshot injury. A spine radiography showed radiopaque material in the body of the third lumbar vertebra. Foreign body was removed using an anterolateral retroperitoneal approach. The postoperative course was uneventful. The patient was discharged 7 days after the operation and was followed-up for 8 months, during which time, the fistula did not reoccur. A bullet retained long term in the vertebral body may cause obstinate osteomyelitis and fistula formation. A fistula caused by a foreign body in the spine can be effectively treated by surgical removal.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.29-33
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• 2018

Traumatic blunt aortic injury especially on proximal ascending aorta is a rare injury with a few reports. Generally emergency surgical management was performed. In this case, however, in multiple trauma with brain injury, emergency surgical management of aortic injury might result in unexpected secondary injury of the brain. Herein, we report a case of a 33-year-old man who was driving a truck was injured in a head-on collision. Evaluation revealed a pseudoaneurysm on his ascending aorta concomitant with epidural hemorrhage. He was treated by surgical management of his ascending aorta after 3 days from accident. There were no postoperative and neurologic complications and the patient was discharged after 18 days.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.231-234
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• 2017

Extrahepatic bile duct injury is commonly associated with hepatic, duodenal, or pancreatic injuries, and isolated extrahepatic bile duct injury is rare. We report a patient who presented with an isolated extrahepatic bile duct injury after blunt trauma. A 50-year-old man was referred to our hospital after having suffered a fall down injury. His laboratory findings showed hyperbiliribinemia with elevated aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase level. Initial abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed a mild degree of hemoperitoneum without evidence of abdominal solid organ injury. On the 3rd day of hospitalization, the patient complained of dyspnea and severe abdominal discomfort. Follow-up abdominal CT showed no significant interval change. Owing to the patient's condition, Emergency laparotomy revealed a large amount of bile-containing fluid collection and about 1 cm in size laceration on the left lateral side of the common hepatic duct. Primary repair of the injured bile duct with T-tube insertion was performed On postoperative day (POD) 30, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography showed minimal bile leakage and endoscopic sphincteroplasty and endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage were performed. On POD 61, the T-tube was removed and the patient was discharged.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.89-93
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• 2014

Bile leaks are complications that are much more frequent after a high-grade liver injury than after a low-grade liver injury. In this report, we describe the management of bile leaks that were encountered after angiographic embolization in a 27-year-old man with a high-grade blunt liver injury. He had undergone an abdominal irrigation and drainage with a laparotomy on post-injury day (PID) 16 due to bile peritonitis and continuous bile leaks from percutaneous abdominal drainage. He required three percutaneous drainage procedures for a biloma and liver abscesses in hepatic segments 4, 5 and 8, as well as endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography with biliary stent placement into the intrahepatic biloma via the common bile duct. We detected communication between the biloma and the bilateral intrahepatic duct by using a tubogram. Follow-up abdominal computed tomography on PID 47 showed partial thrombosis of the inferior vena cava at the suprahepatic level, and the patient received anticoagulation therapy with low molecular weight heparin and rivaroxaban. As symptomatic improvement was achieved by using conservative management, the percutaneous drains were removed and the patient was discharged on PID 82.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.51-55
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• 2016

Isolated injury to the pancreas after abdominal trauma is uncommon, and a delay in diagnosis and treatment can increase the morbidity and mortality. Therapeutic decisions with respect to pancreatic trauma are usually made based on the site of injury and the status of the pancreatic ductal system. In this report, we describe the surgical management of pancreatic head transection as an isolated injury following blunt abdominal trauma. A 55-year-old man presented with epigastric pain that radiated to the back. Abdominal computed tomography revealed a hematoma in the pancreatic head and upstream dilatation of the main pancreatic duct. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography showed complete disruption of and contrast leakage from the main pancreatic duct in the pancreatic head region with a nonenhanced upstream duct. Emergency pancreaticoduodenectomy was successfully performed, and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 9 without any complications.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.52-55
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• 2011

The spleen is the most frequently injured organ following blunt abdominal trauma. However, delayed splenic rupture is rare. As the technical improvement of computed tomography has proceeded, the diagnosis of splenic injury has become easier than before. However, the diagnosis of delayed splenic rupture could be challenging if the trauma is minor and remote. We present a case of delayed splenic rupture in a patient with underlying liver cirrhosis. A 42-year-old male visited our emergency department with pain in the lower left chest following minor blunt trauma. Initial physical exam and abdominal sonography revealed only liver cirrhosis without traumatic injury. On the sixth day after trauma, he complained of abdominal pain and diarrhea after eating snacks. The patient was misdiagnosed as having acute gastroenteritis until he presented with symptoms of shock. Abdominal sonography and computed tomography revealed the splenic rupture. The patient underwent a splenectomy and then underwent a second operation due to postoperative bleeding 20 hours after the first operation. The patient was discharged uneventfully 30 days after trauma. In the present case, the thrombocytopenia and splenomegaly due to liver cirrhosis are suspected of being risk factors for the development of delayed splenic rupture. The physician should keep in mind the possibility of delayed splenic rupture following blunt abdominal or chest trauma.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.264-266
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• 2012

Injury to the bilateral internal branch of superior laryngeal nerve (ibSLN) brings on an impairment of the laryngeal cough reflex that could potentially result in aspiration pneumonia and other respiratory illnesses. We describe a patient with traumatic cervical injury who underwent bilateral ibSLN palsy after anterior cervical discectomy with fusion (ACDF). An 75-year-old man visited with cervical spine fracture and he underwent ACDF through a right side approach. During the post-operative days, he complained of high pitched tone defect, and occasional coughing during meals. With a suspicion of SLN injury and for the work up for the cause of aspiration, we performed several studies. According to the study results, he was diagnosed as right SLN and left ibSLN palsy. We managed him for protecting from silent aspiration. Swallowing study was repeated and no evidence of aspiration was found. The patient was discharged with incomplete recovery of a high pitched tone and improved state of neurologic status. The SLN is an important structure; therefore, spine surgeons need to be concerned and be cautious about SLN injury during high cervical neck dissection, especially around the level of C3-C4 and a suspicious condition of a contralateral nerve injury.