Abstract

Introduction: The abdomen is the most frequently injured body region, and about 25% of all abdominal trauma cases require abdominal exploration. Abdominal traumas are associated with significant morbidity, disability and mortality worldwide. This study aimed to analyze the outcome of surgery for abdominal traumas in operated patients in Aden Hospitals, Yemen.

Methods: This is a descriptive prospective study included 130 patients with abdominal traumas underwent surgical intervention, during January 1st through Dec. 31st, 2023. Sociodemographic, clinical and operative data of patients were collected, and patients were followed for 30 days postoperatively to assess their short-term outcome.

Results: The studied abdominal traumas were predominantly observed among male patients (85.4%), with a mean age of 32.4 ± 12.4 years. Seventy percent of them were Qat chewers, 46.2% were current smokers, and 17.7% were using Shammah. Comorbidity was reported among 38.5%, as arterial hypertension 29.2%, diabetes mellitus 16.1%, and cardiovascular diseases 3.1%. Penetrating abdominal traumas were more common than blunt (83.8% vs. 16.2%), with gunshot wounds as the common mechanism (70.8%) followed by road traffic accidents (16.2%), stab wounds (6.9%) and bomb explosion (6.2%). Penetrating traumas affected mainly small bowel (41.3%), large bowel (39.4%), liver (26.6%) and stomach (24.8%), while blunt traumas affected mainly liver (57.1%), spleen (28.6%), and stomach (19.0%). At presentation, most of them (86.2%) were hemodynamically stable. Morbidity was observed in 43.1% of patients, and mortality among 10.0% of them. Postoperative morbidity and mortality were not significantly associated with patients' sex, age or type of trauma, but significantly associated with hemodynamic instability.

Conclusion: Surgeries for abdominal traumas were associated with significant postoperative morbidity and mortality depending on the hemodynamic state at presentation of patient.

Keywords: Abdominal trauma, Surgery, Penetrating, Blunt, Morbidity, Mortality.

• PDF