EFFECT OF CHANGE IN VELOCITY ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MEDICAL COMPLICATIONS IN PATIENTS WITH MULTISYSTEM TRAUMA SUSTAINED IN VEHICULAR CRASHES

Medical complications such as sepsis or multiple organ system failure increase the morbidity and mortality associated with injuries sustaine d in car crashes. This study addresses the question of the association , if any, between one crash characteristic, i.e. change in velocity (D elta v), and subsequent medical complications. Data on seventy-six sev erely injured patients were obtained as part of an in-depth, trauma-ce nter-based study of the biomechanics of vehicular trauma. Factors foun d to be predictive of the development of complications included patien t age greater than or equal to 36 years, Delta v greater than or equal to 30mph, and injury severity score greater than or equal to 25. Vehi cle occupants involved in crashes with a Delta v greater than or equal to 30 mph had a risk of complications more than five times greater th an for those in the lower Delta v group. Better knowledge of the dynam ics and severity of the crash could help clinical staff anticipate the development of complications and initiate timely prevention strategie s. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.