Cold injury in the United States military population: current trends and comparison with past conflicts.
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.


METHODS
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.


METHODS
The 81st Medical Group at Keesler AFB.


METHODS
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.


CONCLUSIONS
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.
Hall
Andrew
A
Department of Surgery, Keesler Medical Center, Keesler AFB, Mississippi 39534, USA. andrew.hall.2@us.af.mil
Evans
Kendrix
K
Pribyl
Shea
S
D055826:Afghan Campaign 2001-; D005627:Frostbite / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007035:Hypothermia / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008889:Military Personnel; D012042:Registries; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology