Judy L. Dye

Morphine Use after Combat Injury in Iraq and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

BACKGROUND Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common adverse mental health outcome among seriously injured civilians and military personnel who are survivors of trauma. Pharmacotherapy in the aftermath of serious physical injury or exposure to traumatic events may be effective for the secondary prevention of PTSD. METHODS We identified 696 injured U.S. military personnel without serious traumatic brain injury from the Navy-Marine Corps Combat Trauma Registry Expeditionary Medical Encounter Database. Complete data on medications administered were available for all personnel selected. The diagnosis of PTSD was obtained from the Career History Archival Medical and Personnel System and verified in a review of medical records. RESULTS Among the 696 patients studied, 243 received a diagnosis of PTSD and 453 did not. The use of morphine during early resuscitation and trauma care was significantly associated with a lower risk of PTSD after injury. Among the patients in whom PTSD developed, 61% received morphine; among those in whom PTSD did not develop, 76% received morphine (odds ratio, 0.47; P<0.001). This association remained significant after adjustment for injury severity, age, mechanism of injury, status with respect to amputation, and selected injury-related clinical factors. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that the use of morphine during trauma care may reduce the risk of subsequent development of PTSD after serious injury.

Wounding patterns for U.S. Marines and sailors during Operation Iraqi Freedom, major combat phase.

This investigation examined the wounds incurred by 279 U.S. Navy-Marine personnel (97% Marines and 3% sailors) identified as wounded in action during Operation Iraqi Freedom, from March 23 through April 30, 2003. The goal was to assess the potential impact of each causative agent by comparing the differences in anatomical locations, types of injuries caused, and medical specialists needed to treat the casualties. The overall average number of diagnoses per patient was 2.2, and the overall average number of anatomical locations was 1.6. The causative agents were classified into six major categories, i.e., small arms, explosive munitions, motor vehicle accidents, falls, weaponry accidents, and other/unknown. Explosive munitions and small arms accounted for approximately three of four combat-related injuries. Upper and lower extremities accounted for approximately 70% of all injuries, a percentage consistent for battlefield injuries since World War II.

Improved characterization of combat injury

BACKGROUND Combat injury patterns differ from civilian trauma in that the former are largely explosion-related, comprising multiple mechanistic and fragment injuries and high-kinetic-energy bullets. Further, unlike civilians, U.S. armed forces combatants are usually heavily protected with helmets and Kevlar body armor with ceramic plate inserts. Searchable databases providing actionable, statistically valid knowledge of body surface entry wounds and resulting organ injury severity are essential to understanding combat trauma. METHODS Two tools were developed to address these unique aspects of combat injury: (1) the Surface Wound Mapping (SWM) database and Surface Wound Analysis Tool (SWAT) software that were developed to generate 3D density maps of point-of-surface wound entry and resultant anatomic injury severity; and (2) the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) 2005-Military that was developed by a panel of military trauma surgeons to account for multiple injury etiology from explosions and other high-kinetic- energy weapons. Combined data from the Joint Theater Trauma Registry, Navy/Marine Combat Trauma Registry, and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System Mortality Trauma Registry were coded in AIS 2005-Military, entered into the SWM database, and analyzed for entrance site and wounding path. RESULTS When data on 1,151 patients, who had a total of 3,500 surface wounds and 12,889 injuries, were entered into SWM, surface wounds averaged 3.0 per casualty and injuries averaged 11.2 per casualty. Of the 3,500 surface wounds, 2,496 (71%) were entrance wounds with 6,631 (51%) associated internal injuries, with 2.2 entrance wounds and 5.8 associated injuries per casualty (some details cannot be given because of operational security). Crude deaths rates were calculated using Maximum AIS-Military. CONCLUSION These new tools have been successfully implemented to describe combat injury, mortality, and distribution of wounds and associated injuries. AIS 2005-Military is a more precise assignment of severity to military injuries. SWM has brought data from all three combat registries together into one analyzable database. SWM and SWAT allow visualization of wounds and associated injuries by region on a 3D model of the body.

Combat versus civilian open tibia fractures: The effect of blast mechanism on limb salvage

BACKGROUND This study compares open tibia fractures in US Navy and US Marine Corps casualties from the current conflicts with those from a civilian Level I trauma center to analyze the effect of blast mechanism on limb-salvage rates. METHODS Data from the 28,646 records in the University of California San Diego Trauma Registry from 1985 to 2006 was compared with 2,282 records from the US Navy and US Marine Corps Combat Trauma Registry Expeditionary Medical Encounter Database for the period of March 2004 to August 2007. Injuries were categorized by Gustilo-Anderson (G-A) open fracture classification. Independent variables included age, gender, mechanism of injury including blast mechanisms, shock, blood loss, prehospital time, procedures, Injury Severity Score, length of stay, and Mangled Extremity Severity Score (MESS). Dependent variables included early or late amputation and mortality. RESULTS The civilian group had 850 open tibia fractures with 45 amputations; the military group had 21 amputation patients (3 bilateral) in 115 open tibia fractures. Military group patients were more severely injured, more likely have hypotension, and had a higher amputation rate for G-A IIIB and IIIC fractures then civilian group patients. Blast mechanism was seen in the majority of military group patients and was rare in the civilian group. MESS scores had poor sensitivity (0.46, 95% confidence interval: 0.29-0.64) in predicting the need for amputation in the civilian group; in the military group sensitivity was better (0.67, 95% confidence interval: 0.43-0.85), but successful limb salvage was still possible in most cases with an MESS score of ≥7 when attempted. CONCLUSION Despite current therapy, limb salvage for G-A IIIB and IIIC grades are significantly worse for open tibia fractures as a result of blast injury when compared with typical civilian mechanisms. MESS scores do not adequately predict likelihood of limb salvage in combat or civilian open tibia fractures.

The use of temporary vascular shunts in military extremity wounds: a preliminary outcome analysis with 2-year follow-up.

BACKGROUND The use of temporary vascular shunts (TVS)s in the management of wartime extremity vascular injuries has received an increasing amount of attention. However, the overall impact of this adjunct remains incompletely defined. The objective of this study is to characterize outcomes of those patients who suffered wartime extremity vascular injuries managed with TVSs. METHODS This is a retrospective review of the Navy and Marine Corps Combat Trauma Registry examining peripheral vascular injuries treated during the military conflicts in the Middle East. Patient demographics, injury severity score, mechanism of injury, and vessels injured were recorded. Operative reports were reviewed for use of TVSs, type of definitive repair, the need for amputation, and survival. RESULTS Eighty patients were included. Forty-six (57%) had TVSs placed and 34 (43%) underwent repair at initial presentation. The mean injury severity score for the TVS group and the non-TVS groups were 15.0 +/- 5.05 and 12.9 +/- 10.18, respectively, (p = 0.229). There were a total of 13 amputations, 6 (13%) in the TVS group and 7 (21%) in the non-TVS group (p = 0.38). There was no difference in amputation rates between either group. There were no recorded mortalities in either group. Median patient follow-up was 24.5 months (range, 3-48 months). CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates the importance and utility of TVSs in the management of wartime extremity vascular injury. When used to restore perfusion to an injured extremity, there seems to be no adverse effects or overall increase in limb loss rates and therefore a useful adjunct in the surgery for limb salvage.

Combat Injury Coding: A Review and Reconfiguration

BACKGROUND The current civilian Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS), designed for automobile crash injuries, yields important information about civilian injuries. It has been recognized for some time, however, that both the AIS and AIS-based scores such as the Injury Severity Score (ISS) are inadequate for describing penetrating injuries, especially those sustained in combat. Existing injury coding systems do not adequately describe (they actually exclude) combat injuries such as the devastating multi-mechanistic injuries resulting from attacks with improvised explosive devices (IEDs). METHODS After quantifying the inapplicability of current coding systems, the Military Combat Injury Scale (MCIS), which includes injury descriptors that accurately characterize combat anatomic injury, and the Military Functional Incapacity Scale (MFIS), which indicates immediate tactical functional impairment, were developed by a large tri-service military and civilian group of combat trauma subject-matter experts. Assignment of MCIS severity levels was based on urgency, level of care needed, and risk of death from each individual injury. The MFIS was developed based on the casualty’s ability to shoot, move, and communicate, and comprises four levels ranging from “Able to continue mission” to “Lost to military.” Separate functional impairments were identified for injuries aboard ship. Preliminary evaluation of MCIS discrimination, calibration, and casualty disposition was performed on 992 combat-injured patients using two modeling processes. RESULTS Based on combat casualty data, the MCIS is a new, simpler, comprehensive severity scale with 269 codes (vs. 1999 in AIS) that specifically characterize and distinguish the many unique injuries encountered in combat. The MCIS integrates with the MFIS, which associates immediate combat functional impairment with minor and moderate-severity injuries. Predictive validation on combat datasets shows improved performance over AIS-based tools in addition to improved face, construct, and content validity and coding inter-rater reliability. Thus, the MCIS has greater relevance, accuracy, and precision for many military-specific applications. CONCLUSION Over a period of several years, the Military Combat Injury Scale and Military Functional Incapacity Scale were developed, tested and validated by teams of civilian and tri-service military expertise. MCIS shows significant promise in documenting the nature, severity and complexity of modern combat injury.

Characterization and Comparison of Combat-Related Injuries in Women During OIF and OEF

Although historically restricted from combat roles, women suffer from combat-related injuries, especially in recent conflicts where asymmetrical warfare erases distinctions between forward and rear operating areas. U.S. servicewomen who sustained combat-related injury in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) between January 2003 and May 2014 were identified from the Expeditionary Medical Encounter Database. Injuries were characterized using Abbreviated Injury Scale and International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision codes. Of the 844 combat-related injury episodes in women, 51% (n = 433) were OIF injuries and 49% (n = 411) were OEF injuries. Blast events were responsible for 90% of injuries. The average Injury Severity Score was 3, with no statistical difference in means between OIF and OEF. Of significance were increased head injuries in OEF compared with OIF (80% vs. 48%; p < 0.001). Although the majority of combat-related injuries suffered by women were mild, some women suffered life-threatening injuries, and nearly 65% of the injury episodes resulted in more than one injury. More research is needed as the roles of women in the military continue to expand. Future studies will investigate quality of life outcomes and gender differences in combat-related injuries.

Fatal and Non-Fatal Electrocution Injuries at U.S. Marine Corps Forward Medical Facilities During Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom

INTRODUCTION Death from electrocution is rare and generally an accidental occurrence. In contrast to civilian patterns of electrocution injury, the military work environment suffers from a greater percentage of fatal high-voltage electrocutions. This study compared U.S. and international electrocution case fatality rates to rates among deployed military personnel presenting for care at expeditionary medical care facilities. We also sought to identify potential risk factors for fatal electrocution injury among deployed military personnel. MATERIALS AND METHODS A retrospective analysis was performed on electrocution injuries presenting to U.S. Marine Corps forward deployed medical facilities in Iraq and Afghanistan between January 2004 and December 2012. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the study population and compare fatal and nonfatal electrocutions. Fatality rates were reported in cases per 1,000,000 people per year. RESULTS A total of 38 patients were identified; all were males with a mean (SD) age of 25.3 (5.3) years. Most electrocutions occurred on base (68%), whereas a smaller number (21%) occurred while conducting operations outside of the base. A majority of fatal cases (80%) occurred while outside of base on foot or vehicle mounted patrol. The rate of fatal electrocutions among U.S. Marine Corps personnel during this period was 37 per 1,000,000 people per year, 7-fold higher than the international electrocution fatality rate of 5.4 per 1,000,000 people per year and nearly three-fold above the U.S. utility and construction workers fatality rate of 14 per 1,000,000 people per year. CONCLUSIONS Electrocution injuries occurring during foot or vehicle mounted patrols seem to account for findings of higher case fatality rates among deployed military personnel than those found in international or high risk civilian occupational settings. Basic life support training for medical and nonmedical military personnel is critical to optimizing care delivered at the scene of these injuries.

Combat amputeesʼ health-related quality of life and psychological outcomes: A brief report from the wounded warrior recovery project

BACKGROUND This study extends what is known about long-term health-related quality of life (HrQoL) and other psychosocial outcomes (i.e., depression, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) among US military combat amputees serving in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn. METHODS A total of 63 combat amputees were identified from the Wounded Warrior Recovery Project, a study assessing long-term self-reported HrQoL and psychological outcomes among those wounded during military service. Another 477 service members from the Wounded Warrior Recovery Project were identified as a comparison group (i.e., nonamputees with moderate to severe extremity injuries). RESULTS After adjusting for age, time since injury, overall injury severity, and traumatic brain injury, amputees had poorer functional HrQoL than those in the nonamputee comparison group overall and in the specific area related to performance of usual activities, and, to some degree, chronic and acute symptoms, and mobility/self-care. On the other hand, depression and PTSD symptoms were not different for the two groups. CONCLUSION Results suggest that when assessed over 5 years postinjury, on average, amputees have unique physical and functional limitations, yet do not report greater depression or PTSD symptoms than others seriously injured in combat. It may be that state-of-the-art integrated amputee care that includes support networks and emphasis on adjustment and psychological health may increase successful coping and adjustment, at least to a level that is on par with other types of serious combat injury. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Epidemiologic/prognostic study, level III.