[Capacity for activity in penetrating and blunt abdominal injuries]

In the archives of the accident hospitals available, the data of patients who had been hospitalized because of a penetrating or blunt abdominal trauma in the last two years before the surveys were evaluated. Besides the abdominal trauma, at most trivial injuries of other regions were permitted. The data which might give information on how massive the intraabdominal injury was and/or the severity of shock symptoms were taken from the patient record sheets. Afterwards, it was attempted to obtain in an interview details on the external circumstances, the course of the accident event itself and the nature of the reaction to the trauma. Finally, 32 casualties (14 with penetrating and 18 with blunt abdominal injury) were surveyed. Fundamental differences in the behavior of these two subgroups were detected and verified with statistical test techniques. Circumspect behavior after penetrating abdominal trauma was characteristic. Nevertheless, in a few cases there was loss of the ability to act even in limited penetrating injury of the abdominal wall. However, the casualties themselves had the impression of a severe stab injury and this determined the primary reaction to the trauma. A fundamentally different behavior pattern was shown by those who had suffered a blunt abdominal injury. For them, it was typical that they became unable to act immediately or within a few seconds. With regard to the significance of pain, the restriction of motor movements as well as the relation of assumed and clinically verified injury severity is dealt with in respect of the capacity to act in a comparison of the two subgroups.