[Damage control in vascular trauma]

During the era of frequent occurrence of motor vehicle accidents and criminal injuries with lethal weapons, trauma surgeons have accumulated much experience in managing severely injured victims. Very often, efforts to proceed with definitive repair at initial surgery led to patient death despite the control of anatomic bleeding. Damage control methods were thus developed to save patients who otherwise would hove died. Damage control treatment for vascular trauma patients is still in its infancy in Japan. This paper presents an overview of the relevant reports form international journals dealing with the present status of damage control methods in vascular trauma patients.