ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines the over-arching principles of trauma care from both a military and civilian perspective. Trauma is the leading cause of mortality worldwide, killing more people every year than Human immunodeficiency virus, Tuberculosis and malaria combined. Within low- and middle-income countries trauma is the greatest burden of death and disability, accounting for approximately 90% of the total burden of injury. With many traumatic injuries due to road traffic collisions, the first stage in trauma care is to prevent injuries, through safety initiatives including wearing of either helmets or seat belts. Life-threatening breathing conditions associated with trauma include blast lung, tension pneumothorax and flail chest. ‘Damage control surgery’ is a term often used to aggressively manage the lethal triad of trauma. Hypothermia in trauma is a poorly visible problem but a significant challenge; it can be either endogenous or accidental, but is associated with increased mortality and morbidity.
