The injury potential and lethality of stab wounds: a Folsom Prison Study.
The morbidity and mortality of stab wounds is unknown since much of the data is unobtainable. Folsom Prison, a closed system with respect to population at risk and medical care, represents a unique situation where all stab wounds and subsequent care are accounted for. A retrospective review of stabbing incidents at Folsom Prison identified 751 wounds in 270 prisoners. Overall mortality was 3%. Thirty-five per cent of the victims were hospitalized. The overall chance of serious injury, defined as an assault victim requiring more than cleansing and suturing of his wounds, was 25%. The most common procedures were tube thoracostomy (performed 36 times) and celiotomy (performed 31 times). We believe that this is the first study of its kind involving a closed population to accurately assess the overall morbidity and mortality of stab wounds. The 3% mortality and the 25% requiring a procedure beyond suturing reflects the low injury potential long clinically suspected in stab wounds.
Walton
C B
CB
Department of Surgery, University of California, Davis.
Blaisdell
F W
FW
Jordan
R G
RG
Bodai
B I
BI
D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011330:Prisons; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014951:Wounds, Stab / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy