Blunt Trauma Flashcards
Why can blunt trauma be deceptive?
The true nature of the injury is often hidden and evidence of the serious injury is very subtle or even absent
What is the most common cause of trauma death and disability?
Blunt trauma
What is the branch of physics dealing with forces of objects in motion and the energy exchanges that occur as objects collide?
Kinematics
What are the two basic principals of kinetics?
The law of inertia
The law of energy conservation
Which physics law helps to explain what happens during blunt trauma?
Inertia
What is Newtons inertia law?
A body in motion will stay in motion
A body at rest will stay at rest
What is the law of conservation?
Energy can neither be created nor destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another.
What is the function of an objects mass and velocity?
Kinetic energy
What is the equation used to find force?
Mass(weight) x acceleration(deceleration)
Which Newton law explains the forces at work during a collision?
Second law of motion
_____ is defined as a wound or injury that is externally and violently produced by some outside force.
Trauma
_____ is the draining of blood to the point at which life cannot be sustained.
Exsanguination
What does the force devolved in a vehicle collision depend on?
The velocity of travel and the stopping distance
When does body collision occur?
When a vehicle occupant strikes the vehicles interior
What occurs to the speed of an unrestrained occupant in a vehicle collision?
It either remains at or close to the initial speed
When does organ collision occur in an impact?
Results as the occupant contacts the vehicles interior and slows or stops
What is a secondary collision?
Occurs when a vehicle occupant is impacted by objects traveling within the auto
What are some common injuries associated with the use of lap belts by themselves?
Abdominal compression
Spinal fractures
Airbags are also known as?
Supplemental restraint systems
In which type of collision are airbags extremely effective?
Frontal
What indicates the presence of an airbag?
SRS Sticker
What type of airbags are only meant for the first impact of a collision?
Curtain airbags
Side airbags
What is the proper placement of a child in a vehicle?
Facing rear
What type of collision is the most common?
Rotational
What are the top 2 collisions which are most common?
Rotational
Frontal
In a more rural area, anticipate a greater percentage of _______ impacts with corresponding reductions in other categories.
Frontal
The ________ pathway accounts for over 1/2 of deaths in vehicular collisions.
Up-and-over
What are some common injuries seen in an up-and-over collision?
Possible bilateral fractures
Hollow-organ rupture
Liver laceration
Neck hyperextension/flexion
In the _________ pathway, the unrestrained occupant slides downward as the vehicle comes to stop.
Down-and-under
______, __________, _______ dislocations or fractures are common in down-and-under collisions.
Knee
Femur
Hip
Paper bag syndrome usually occurs in which frontal impact collision?
Down-and-under
While ejection may occur with other types of impact, it is most commonly associated with _____ impact.
Frontal
What is the definition used to describe application of the forces of trauma along the axis of the spine?
Axial loading
The _______ is the region of the vehicle designed to absorb the energy of impact.
Crumple zone
In which impact is there an increase in upper extremity injuries?
Lateral
What is the special consideration for lateral impacts in regards to injuries?
Index of suspicion for life-threatening internal injuries must be higher than vehicle damage alone suggests
In a _____ impact, the auto is struck at an oblique angle and rotates as the collision forces are expanded.
Rotational
In rotational impacts, autos involved are ____ from their path rather than _____.
Deflected
Stopped
In rotational impacts, the occupants stopping distance _____, deceleration is more ____, and injuries are ____ serious.
Increases
Gradual
Less
What is the most common injury seen in rear-end impacts?
Neck
A ____ is normally caused by a change in elevation and/or vehicle with a high center of gravity.
Rollover
A common result of rollover is?
ejection or partial ejection with a limb or head trapped between the rolling vehicle and the ground.
When should the direction of impact and amount of vehicle damage be evaluated?
During scene size up
_____ indicates the presence of forces greater than those that could be absorbed by the crumple zone.
Intrusion
A dented dash suggests injury to the _______ or injuries transmitted to the _____ or ____.
Knees
Femur
Hip
Trauma to the head or body cavity accounts for _____ precent of vehicular mortality.
85%
What happens to the driver in frontal motorcycle collisions?
Front of bike dips down, propelling rider upward and forward while the handlebars catch lower abdomen or pelvis
An ______ motorcycle impact occurs when the bike strikes an object at an oblique angle .
Angular
What happens to the rider in an angular motorcycle collision?
Riders lower extremity is trapped between the object struck and the bike
What injuries are commonly seen with an angular motorcycle collision?
Fracture or crush of foot, ankle, knee, femur
Open wounds
A _____ motorcycle impact occurs when an experienced rider, facing imminent collision, “lays the bike down”
Sliding
What are the injuries resulting from an sliding motorcycle impact?
Lacerations, abrasions, minor fractures
Motorcycle ejections result in which impacts?
Initial bike/object collision
Rider/object impact
Rider/ground impact
Adult pedestrians generally turn _____ from oncoming vehicles and present a ____ surface to impact.
Away
Lateral
What injuries are common in an adult who has been struck by a vehicle?
Tibia and fibula fractures
_______ collisions usually results in what types of injuries?
Ejections, crush injuries secondary to rollover, and glancing blows against obstructions in the snow
An _____ is an agent that enhances combustion of a fuel.
Oxidizer
Explosions can be caused by ____, ____, or ______.
Dust
Fumes
Explosive compounds
An explosion occurs when?
When an agent or environment combusts
The heat and pressure differential between an exploding agent and surround air can produce several mechanisms of injury including?
Pressure wave, blast wind, projectiles, heat, and displacement of persons near the blast
When the explosion involves a dust, aerosol, or gas cloud, the result is an ________, not _______ of detonation.
Area
Single point
In an underwater detonation, any submerged portion of the victim is subject to the rapid _____ and _____.
Compression
Decompression
The lethal range for an explosive charge increases ____ with an underwater detonation.
3x
_____ is a rapid increase, then decrease, in atmospheric pressure created by an explosion.
Over pressure
Most life-threatening compression injuries in pressure waves are usually limited to?
People in close proximity to the detonation, with the exceptions of gas-cloud ignitions and underwater detonations
The ____ is the actual outward movement of heated and expanding gases from the explosion epicenter.
Blast wind
What part of an explosion has less strength but greater duration than a pressure wave?
Blast wind
What causes injuries seen from blast winds?
Blasts may propel debris or displace victims
A blast wind is defined as?
The air movement caused as the heated and pressurized products of an explosion move outward
An ordnance is defined as?
Military weapons and munitions
A ____ is an arrow shaped projectile found in some military ordnance.
Flechette
How does the design of the Flechette help?
Gives Flechette greater following surface and aligns the missiles in flight, reducing their wind resistance and increasing their range and penetrating ability
What happens during an explosion in a confined space?
Pressure wave stays longer
What is a danger to consider with confined space explosion?
Structural collapse
An _____ is an agent that combusts easily or creates combustion.
Incendiary
What is napalm?
A highly incendiary substance that clings to people or structures when spread by a blast
Primary blast injuries are caused by?
The heat of the explosion and the overpressure wave
Secondary blast injuries include?
Trauma caused by projectiles
Tertiary blast injuries include?
Injuries resulting from personnel displacement and structural collapse
When should a disaster triage be employed?
If the number of patients exceed the immediate capabilities of your EMS system
What is the most common trauma associated with explosions?
Lung injury
What are the signs and symptoms of a patient experiencing lung injury post blast?
Crackles
Dyspnea
Hemoptysis
What position should patients be placed in if lung injury is a possibility following blast?
Left lateral recumbent position with head somewhat down
____ are a release of stored gravitational energy.
Falls
Newton’s second law illustrates that?
the more rapid the deceleration the greater the force and resultant injury
Trauma resulting from a fall is dependent on?
The area of contact and the pathway of energy transmission
What is considered a severe fall for an adult?
Dropping from more than three times height or 20 feet
What is considered a severe fall for a child?
Drop from 10 feet
Sports injuries are most commonly produced by?
extreme exertion, fatigue, or by direct trauma forces.
Sports injuries can be secondary to?
Acceleration, deceleration, compression, rotation, hyperflexion, or hyperextension
What occurs in a crush injury?
Great force to soft tissue and bone compress surfaces together while stretching semi fluid soft tissue laterally
What causes a buildup of toxins in the blood stream?
Crush injuries
What is the concern for blood flow returning to a limb with crush injury?
Blood may carry toxins back to the central circulation which could induce cardiac dysrhythmias
The first tissue of the body to experience the effects of trauma is:
Skin
The most common causes of blunt trauma is/are:
Motor vehicle crashes
A physical exchange of energy from an object or surface transmitted through the skin into the body’s interior describes:
Penetrating trauma
Blunt trauma can create internal injuries due to the movement of organs inside the body cavities. Which organ can be lacerated by the ligamentum teres?
The liver
The draining if blood to the point at which life cannot be sustained is called:
Exsanguination
Airbags work much differently than seat belts and are extremely effective for ______ crashes.
Frontal
The child’s _____ makes protection in vehicle crashes difficult.
Anatomy
Frontal impacts produce three pathways of patient travel. Injuries in the down-and-under pathway most commonly include:
Hollow-organ ruptures
The ______ pathway accounts for over half of deaths in vehicular crashes.
Up-and-over
When a ____ impact occurs, the index of suspicion for serious and life-threatening internal injuries must be higher than vehicle damage alone suggests.
Lateral
The anatomical region most commonly injured in the rear-impact is the:
Neck
In trauma associated with a blast, assessment should include a high index of suspicion for:
Lung injury
When a patient has respiratory compromise due to a blast injury, aggressive ventilation can create:
Emboli
In crush injuries, the release of toxins into the central circulation can cause:
Cardiac dysrhythmias
