Citation

Durrands TH, Murphy M, Wohlgemut JM, De'Ath HD, Perkins ZB. Br. J. Surg. 2023; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1093/bjs/znad285

PMID

37847819

Abstract

Physical examination is a fundamental component of the primary survey of trauma patients, designed to promptly identify life-threatening injuries1. Missed diagnoses may delay treatment of time-critical injuries, whereas over-diagnosis may lead to unnecessary triage or treatment2. Accurate diagnosis is therefore key to ensuring appropriate and timely definitive management, which has been shown to reduce morbidity and mortality after trauma2. However, the ability of physical examination to identify life-threatening torso injuries remains unclear. While several factors can influence the accuracy of physical examination, such as the setting (pre-hospital versus in-hospital), mechanism of injury (blunt versus penetrating trauma), severity of injury, presence of distracting injuries and impaired consciousness, there is no comprehensive review of the diagnostic accuracy of torso examination in trauma patients3. Existing reviews have focused on blunt abdominal and pelvic trauma, produced conflicting results, and do not include the most recent original data on this subject3,4. To address these knowledge gaps, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the diagnostic accuracy of physical examination to identify potentially life-threatening torso injuries in adults and to evaluate factors that may affect its accuracy...

Language: en