Urban bomb blast injuries: patterns of injury and treatment.

A review of many series reporting injuries following blasts, data allows certain conclusions to be made: 1. Most patients sustain minor injuries, which may be treated on an outpatient basis. 2. Injuries predominantly affect the head and neck and the periphery, which suggests that clothing plays a major role in protection from secondary injuries. 3. Injuries to the chest and abdomen are relatively uncommon but have a high mortality, also associated with head injury. 4. Primary blast injuries are uncommonly seen in a hospital setting, because they usually result in immediate death.