[Vascular trauma]

Vascular trauma is essentially acute arterial obstruction, often combined with hemorrhage, fracture, and infection. It can be both life-threatening and limb-threatening and needs an emergency operation. In vascular trauma patient, multiple fracture and organ injury, such as brain, lung, liver, spleen, kidney, or gastrointestinal tract should be evaluated to decide treatment priority. When the pulse distal from the injured site is absent or diminished, vascular trauma is most likely and reconstruction should be accomplished within "the golden time (6-8 hours)". Intimal damage followed by platelet aggregation and thrombus formation will necessitate resection and repair of the site instead of simple thrombectomy. Although autogenous vein is the first choice, artificial graft can be implanted for short segment in non-infected field.