title: Contemporary wars and their contributions to vascular injury management.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Man's inhumanity for man still knows no boundaries, as we continue as a species as a whole to engage in war. According to Kohn's Dictionary of Wars [1], of over 3,700 years of recorded history, there have been a total of 3,010 wars. One is hard pressed to actually find a period of time in which here has not been an active conflict in the globe. The world has experienced two world wars: WWI (1914-1918) and WWII (1939-1945). The total number of military casualties in WWI was over 37 million, while WWII so far, has been the deadliest military conflict in history with over 60 million people killed accounting for slightly over 2.5% of the world's population.
  
  
  METHODS
  The purpose of this study is to review contemporary wars and their contributions to vascular injury management. It is precisely wartime contributions that have led to the more precise identification and management of these injuries resulting in countless lives and extremities saved. However, surgeons dealing with vascular injuries have faced a tough and arduous road. Their journey was initiated by surgical mavericks which undaunted, pressed on against all odds guided by William Stewart Halsted's classic statement in 1912: "One of the chief fascinations in surgery is the management of wounded vessels."
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Contemporary wars of the XX-XXI centuries gave birth, defined and advanced the field of vascular injury management.
authors.affiliation: Division of Trauma Surgery and Surgical Critical Care, Department of Surgery, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA, drjasensio@gmail.com.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Asensio
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Petrone
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pérez-Alonso
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Verde
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: C P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Marini
mesh_terms: D005121:Extremities / Q000098:blood supply; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D008887:Military Medicine / Q000266:history* / Q000639:trends; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000266:history*; D057772:Vascular System Injuries / Q000266:history* / Q000628:therapy; D000067398:War-Related Injuries / Q000266:history* / Q000628:therapy; D014857:Warfare