Penetrating head injuries caused by a new weapon, the side dome

The "side dome" is a mix of high and low explosives with a multitude of sma ll metal balls molded within a specially designed half-sphere that directs the explosion wave and the projectiles in one direction to augment the harm . This weapon, originally designed by guerrilla and terrorist groups, is no w used by regular armies. This report presents one craniocervical and eight cranial injuries caused by this new weapon and discusses the cases' variou s clinical features, the paucity of intracerebral cavitation damage along t he missile track, the need for only minimally aggressive surgery, and the r elatively favorable outcome. In all cases, the helmet offered good protecti on and the entry of the projectiles was just below its rim in an upward dir ection.