Penetrating cardiac injuries

BACKGROUND This study was planned to evaluate patients with penetrating cardiac injury. METHODS Twenty-two patients had cardiac injury among twenty-five patients who had been referred to our hospital with a suspicion of this diagnosis. Data of the patients were retrospectively evaluated. RESULTS Echocardiography could be performed in 11 patients with stable haemodynamics and pericardial effusion was established in all of them with one false positive result. The patient with false positive result had left internal thoracic artery and venous injury. Cardiac tamponade was seen in 17 (77%) patients. Injury sites were right ventricle 10 (45.5%), left ventricle 7 (31.8%), left ventricle consisting left anterior descending artery 2 (9.1%), right atrium 1 (4.5%) and pericardial injuries and hematoma 2 (9.1%). The mean physiologic index (PI) of the patients was 10.68 +/- 5.63, penetrating cardiac trauma index was (PCTI) 14.09 +/- 6.3, penetrating thoracic trauma index (PTTI) was 17 +/- 8.84 and organ injury scale according to the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST/OIS)was 3.86 +/- 1.25. Mortality rate was 27.3% with 6 out of 22 patients. PI, PCTI, PM and AAST/OIS scores of the non-survivors were significantly higher than those of the survivors (p < 0.05). While there was no difference between survivors and non-survivors regarding the presence of tamponade and the frequency of the associated abdominal injury, left ventricular and left anterior descending artery injuries and associated lung injuries were more common in non-survivors (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION Non-survivors with penetrating cardiac injury have higher PI, PCTI, PTTI and AAST/OIS scores and they are more severely injured patients comparing to the survivors.