Cold injury in the United States military population: current trends and comparison with past conflicts.

Authors:
Address: Department of Surgery, Keesler Medical Center, Keesler AFB, Mississippi 39534, USA. andrew.hall.2@us.af.mil
Journal:

Publication:

abstract

OBJECTIVE:

the war in Afghanistan represents the first large-scale conflict involving military troops in a Cold, mountainous climate since the Korean War. An analysis was conducted to identify the extent of cold weather injuries, especially frostbite, in the deployed military population.

DESIGN:

A retrospective analysis of military databases was conducted with tabulation of all cases of cold-weather injuries in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Casualties reviewed occurred between 2001 and 2009.

SETTING:

The 81st Medical Group at Keesler AFB.

PARTICIPANTS:

A total of 18,214 patients reported in the Joint Theater Trauma Registry (JTTR).

RESULTS:

Overall, 19 cases of cold-weather injury were identified in the Afghanistan Conflict. Two cases of frostbite were identified with only 1 likely requiring surgical intervention. No cases were identified in Iraq.

CONCLUSION:

The 19 cold-weather injuries represent a dramatic decrease from the 6300 cases of cold-weather injury reported in the last major cold-weather conflict, the Korean War. This decrease results from the shorter and weather-dependent engagements, cold-weather education, and improved equipment of United States and allied personnel.

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