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. 2013 May;7(2):67-73.
doi: 10.1177/2049463713487324.

Traumatic amputations

Jon Clasper  1 , Arul Ramasamy  2
Affiliations

Traumatic amputations

Jon Clasper et al. Br J Pain. 2013 May.

Abstract

Traumatic amputations remain one of the most emotionally disturbing wounds of conflict, as demonstrated by their frequent use in films to illustrate the horrors of war. Unfortunately, they remain common injuries, particularly following explosions, and, in addition, many survivors require primary amputation for unsalvageable injuries or to save their life. A third group, late amputations, is being increasingly recognised, often as a result of the sequelae of complex foot injuries. This article will look at the epidemiology of these injuries and their acute management, complications and outcome.

Keywords: Acute pain; chronic pain; musculoskeletal pain; neuralgia; pain.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: The author declares that there is no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Comparison of soft-tissue injury levels between conflicts.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
The zones of injury following a mine explosion. Source: Ramasamy et al. (2013).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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