@article{ref1,
title="Cold Injury in the United States Military Population: Current Trends and Comparison with Past Conflicts",
journal="Journal of Surgical Education",
year="2010",
author="Hall, Anthony and Evans, Kendrix and Pribyl, Shea",
volume="67",
number="2",
pages="61-65",
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.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1931-7204",
doi="10.1016/j.jsurg.2010.02.003",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsurg.2010.02.003"
}