Surgical need after disasters caused by natural hazards
Citation: Bartholdson S, von Schreeb J. Natural disasters and injuries: what does a surgeon need to know? Current Trauma Reports. 2018:4:103-108.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: Yes.
Funding sources: None noted.
What is this? In this literature review, the authors searched for descriptions of injuries from disasters caused by natural hazards. They did not restrict their searches by date, type, or language of publication. The authors included 25 studies.
What was found: Injuries from earthquakes, particularly limb injuries, are most likely to need surgical attention. The need for trauma surgery following other disasters caused by natural hazards, such as tsunamis, storms, wildfires, and floods was low, and mainly involved debridement and wound care. There may also be a need for non-trauma surgery, for instance, cesarean sections.
Implications: The authors of the review stated that rapid surgical care is needed for critical injuries following earthquakes. More research and data are needed to determine the pattern of expected injuries, number of injured, healthcare resources available, and to what extent additional surgical assistance is required.
Other considerations: The authors of the review did not discuss their findings in the context of issues relating to health equity.
This summary was prepared by Briann Mensour, checked by Jawaria Karim, and finalized by William Summerskill.