Pathomorphological observations of gunshot wounds.
Soft tissue wounds of hind limbs were engendered in 64 dogs by shooting rifle bullets of 5.56 and 7.62 mm calibres at a range of twenty meters with impact velocities ranging from 516.7 m/s to 959.7 m/s. Gross and microscopical examinations of these wounds were then made. The main results were as follows: 1. At conventional velocity, the injuries caused by 5.56 mm bullets were much more severe than those caused by 7.62 mm bullets. The reason for this is that the former has greater velocity and liability to tumbling, breaking or deformation in tissues. 2. The gunshot wound track presented itself in three parts: a primary wound track, a contusion zone and a concussion zone. The mean maximum diameter of primary wound track was 1.16 to 3.34 cm and the thickness of contusion zone was about 0.5 cm. Sometimes there was no definite demarcation between the contusion zone and the concussion zone found by conventional histological examination. The thickness of the contusion zone measured grossly was usually greater than that measured microscopically. 3. Perfusion of arteries of the injured legs with Chinese ink proved to be a useful method for determining the demarcation between the contusion zone and the concussion zone. 4. Pathological changes in the three zones were described in detail and the mechanism of wounding was discussed.
D000818:Animals; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*