Trauma and minor injuries Flashcards
What is an ISS?
Injury severity score
What ISS score classifies a severe trauma?
Above or equal to 16
How do you calculate an ISS?
By scoring the injury to each section of the body from 1-6 (minor to unsurvivable) and adding the squares of three highest scores
By convention what score on any part of the body on an ISS will result in a maximum score?
6 - unsurvivable
What is the maximum ISS?
75
What regions of the body are assessed in an ISS?
Head
Face
Neck
Thorax
Abdomen
Spine
Upper extremity
Lower extremity
External and other
What demographic are most at risk of major trauma?
Males over the age of 64
What percentage of trauma patients are over 75?
25%
Why is shock difficult to diagnose in elderly patients?
Poor ability for systemic compensation -
Existing insufficient cardiac output causes a chronic state of hypoperfusion.
Maximum heart rate is lower whilst peripheral vascular resistance is higher.
The cardiovascular system reserve is inable to respond.
What is CATMIST-E?
Trauma pre-alert
Callsign
Age
Time of injury
Mechanism
Injuries found and/or suspected
Signs/vitals
Treatment given/required
-
ETA
What is REBOA?
Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Artery
What is the difference between primary and secondary head injuries?
Primary head injuries are immediate brain damage caused upon impact.
Secondary head injuries are progressive after the point of injury - e.g. progressive oedema, contusion, ischemia all leading to increased ICP, herniation and death.
How can pre-hospital care prevent secondary head injury?
Reducing hypotension, hypoxaemia, hypocapnia, hypoglycaemia and hyperglycaemia.
What are the types of skull fracture?
Compound/open
Hairline
Depression
Base of skull
What are typical visual signs of base of skull fracture?
Peri-orbital ecchymosis (racoon eyes)
Mastoid ecchymosis (battle signs)
What are other symptoms of increased ICP other than Cushing’s Triad?
Reduced GCS
Papiloedema
Dialated poorly reactive pupils
Decerebrate posturing
Palsy of 6th cranial nerve
How does increased ICP lead to presention of Cushing’s Triad?
-When ICP exceeds the Mean Arterial Blood Pressure the arteries in the brain will be compressed causing ischemia.
-Sympathetic response causes peripheral vasoconstriction and hypertension and initial tachycardia.
-HTN stimulates baroreceptors that stimulates a parasympathetic response via muscarinic receptors causing bradycardia.
-HTN and increased ICP will press on the resp. centre of the brain stem causing irregular or slowed breathing
In which section of the spine do most injuries occur?
Cervical ≈ 55%
What is the difference between primary and secondary spinal injuries?
Primary is immediate damage caused upon impact
Secondary are progressive injury from cord oedema, cord hypoperfusion and extension of primary injury
How can pre-hospital care limit secondary spinal cord injuries?
Preventing hypoxia, hypoperfusion and mechanical disturbance of the spine
What is neurogenic shock?
A distributive shock resulting in malfunction of the sympathetic nervous system.
What injuries usually cause neurogenic shock?
Acute spinal chord injuries above T6
What does neurogenic shock cause?
Disruption/malfunction of the SNS with a loss of catcholamines causing parasympathetic affects such as: -bradycardia
-vasodilation/hypotension
-respiratory effects (lung collapse, pneumonia, respiratory failure)
What is spinal shock?
Spinal cord ischemia and hypoxia in a specific area after injury often leading to paralysis and loss of sensation below the area of injury
What causes spinal shock after injury to the spinal cord?
Damage to the spinal cord causes bleeding and an inflammatory response. Chemical mediators are released causing vasoconstriction leading to ischemia and hypoxia
What neurogenic treatment can be given after spinal injuries?
Fluid/vasopressors to restore sympathetic function.
How long can spinal shock last?
Up to 5/6 weeks
What is the main difference between neurogenic and spinal shock?
Neurogenic is cirulatory and haemodynamic in nature whereas spinal is not
How long can neurogenic shock last?
4/5 weeks
How quickly can spinal shock set in?
From around 30 minutes after injury
What is the difference between pneumothorax and tension pneumothorax?
A simple pneumothorax is non-expanding. In a tension pneumothorax a “one-way valve” is created allowing air in but not out. Increasing pressure starts to collapse vascular structures within the mediastinum.
What is cardiac tamponade?
Compression or pressure on the heart caused by build up of fluid in the pericardium
What can cardiac tamponade cause?
Reduced filling of the heart and reduced output leading to hypoperfusion.
What causes flail chest?
Almost always blunt trauma, very rarely bone deterioration due to disease/age.
What are the main causes of cardiac tamponade?
Cancers (mainly advanced lung but also breast cancer, melanoma, leukaemia and lymphoma)
Injury to the myocardium, aorta or cornary vessels (trauma, surgery, MI)
Pericarditis
What are the classifications of pelvic fractures?
Anterio-posterior (‘open book’)
Lateral compression
Vertical shear
What is the main danger with pelvic fractures?
Severe haemorrhage
How much blood can the retroperitoneal cavity hold?
Up to 4L (The human body usually has around 5L of circulating blood)
What type of fractures are perpendicular across the bone?
Transverse
What type of fractures are diagonal across the bone?
Oblique
What type of fractures result from a twisting force?
Spiral
What type of fracture involves a section of bone broken into many pieces?
Comminuted
What type of fracture involves small pieces of bone being pulled away by tendons or ligaments?
Avulsions
What type of fractures arise from a longitudinal compression?
Impacted fracture
What type of fractures involve longitudinal cracks?
Fissure fractures
What type of fracture is caused by a bone bending and cracking?
Greenstick
How much blood can be losses to a closed and an open femur fracture?
1-1.5 for a closed, 2-3 for an open
How much blood can be lost from a closed and an open tibia fracture?
0.5-1L for closed, 1-2L for open
What is neurovascular compromise?
Compromised blood flow or nerve damage following injury/surgery
What are the 6 P’s of a neurovascular assessment?
Pain
Poikilothermia
Paresthesia (tingling)
Paralysis
Pulselessness
Pallor
What is sequelae?
Long term chronic complications/affects of an acute condition/injury
What amount of blood loss defines a major haemorrhage?
More than 150ml/min or more than 50% of total volume in less that 3 hours
What is the body’s initial compensation response to a major haemorrhage?
Initial compensation:
- Vasoconstriction
- Increased HR
- Increased RR
What is the Barcroft-Edholm reflex?
A parasympathetic cardiac response of bradycardia, systemic vasodilation and hypotension.
What is the Barcroft-Edholm response’s role in major haemorrhage?
Triggered by a reduction in right atrial pressure, it attempts to slow blood loss
What is the arterial-baroreceptor reflex during major haemorrhage?
An initial increase in heart rate and peripheral resistance due to baroreceptors in the aortic and carotid sinuses triggering the medulla to send action potentials to the smooth muscle in the peripheral blood vessels and to the heart to increase contractility and heart rate
What is the terminal sympathetic storm?
With severe blood loss, the vagal reflex is overcome by a massive sympathetic response i.e. increased heart rate and systemic vascular resistance. This attempt to increase cardiac output aims to preserve organ perfusion.
What is exsanguination?
Loss of entire blood volume - ‘bleeding out/to death’
What is the triad of death?
Coagulopathy
Hypothermia
Metabolic Acidosis
How does haemorrhage lead to metabolic acidosis?
Haemorrhage causes hypoperfusion leading to cellular hypoxia. Anaerobic metabolism ensues releasing lactic acid
How does metabolic acidosis affect coagulopathy
Acidosis accelerates fibrinogen consumption with no effect on production, resulting in a deficit in fibrinogen availability.
The underlying contributing mechanisms are unclear.