Trauma care at a multinational United Kingdom-led Role 3 combat hospital: resuscitation outcomes from a multidisciplinary approach.

UNLABELLED: Recent conflicts have led significant advancements in casualty care. Facilities serving combat wounded operate in challenging environments. Our purpose is to describe the multidisciplinary resuscitation algorithm utilized at a United Kingdom-led, Role 3 multinational treatment facility in Afghanistan focusing on injury severity and in-hospital mortality.

METHODS: Data were extracted from our prospectively collected trauma registry on military members wounded in action.

RESULTS: From November 1, 2009 to September 30, 2011, there were 3483 military trauma admissions. Common mechanisms of injury were improvised explosive devices (48%), followed by gunshot wounds (29%). Most patients (83.1%) had an Injury Severity Score (ISS) <15. For patients with complete ISS data, 8.4% had massive transfusion and 6.1% had an initial base deficit >5. Patients admitted with signs of life had a died of wounds rate of 1.8% with an average 1.2 day hospital stay. The mortality rate for patients undergoing massive transfusion was 4.8%, and for patients with a base deficit >5, mortality was 12.3%. Severely injured patients (ISS > 24) had a mortality rate of 16.5%.

CONCLUSION: A systematic, multidisciplinary approach to trauma is associated with low in-hospital mortality. The outcomes in this study serve as a measure for future care in Role 3 facilities.