Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Book

Thoracic Trauma

Luke Edgecombe, David F. Sigmon  1 , Michael A. Galuska, Lambros D. Angus  2
In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan.
.
Affiliations
Free Books & Documents
Book

Thoracic Trauma

Luke Edgecombe et al.
Free Books & Documents

Excerpt

Thoracic trauma accounts for up to 35% of trauma-related deaths in the United States and encompasses a broad range of injuries that can cause significant morbidity and mortality. Prompt evaluation during the primary trauma survey is key to identifying those injuries that are immediately life-threatening and require rapid intervention. Once these conditions are ruled out, less urgent thoracic injuries are often readily diagnosed during the secondary trauma survey and successfully managed by applying the fundamental principles of advanced trauma life support (ATLS).

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure: Luke Edgecombe declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: David Sigmon declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: Michael Galuska declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: Lambros Angus declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

References

    1. Meredith JW, Hoth JJ. Thoracic trauma: when and how to intervene. Surg Clin North Am. 2007 Feb;87(1):95-118, vii. - PubMed
    1. Champion HR, Copes WS, Sacco WJ, Lawnick MM, Keast SL, Bain LW, Flanagan ME, Frey CF. The Major Trauma Outcome Study: establishing national norms for trauma care. J Trauma. 1990 Nov;30(11):1356-65. - PubMed
    1. Miserocchi G. Physiology and pathophysiology of pleural fluid turnover. Eur Respir J. 1997 Jan;10(1):219-25. - PubMed
    1. Lichtenstein DA, Mezière G, Lascols N, Biderman P, Courret JP, Gepner A, Goldstein I, Tenoudji-Cohen M. Ultrasound diagnosis of occult pneumothorax. Crit Care Med. 2005 Jun;33(6):1231-8. - PubMed
    1. Rodriguez RM, Anglin D, Langdorf MI, Baumann BM, Hendey GW, Bradley RN, Medak AJ, Raja AS, Juhn P, Fortman J, Mulkerin W, Mower WR. NEXUS chest: validation of a decision instrument for selective chest imaging in blunt trauma. JAMA Surg. 2013 Oct;148(10):940-6. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources