title: Management of the open abdomen: clinical recommendations for the trauma/acute care surgeon and general surgeon.
abstract: Traditionally, the surgical approach to managing abdominal injuries was to assess the extent of trauma, repair any damage and close the abdomen in one definitive procedure rather than leave the abdomen open. With advances in medicine, damage control surgery using temporary abdominal closure methods is being used to manage the open abdomen (OA) when closure is not possible. Although OA management is often observed in traumatic injuries, the extension of damage control surgery concepts, in conjunction with OA, for the management of the septic patient requires that the general surgeon who is faced with these challenges has a comprehensive knowledge of this complex subject. The purpose of this article is to provide guidance to the acute care and general surgeon on the use of OA negative pressure therapy (OA-NPT; ABTHERA™ Open Abdomen Negative Pressure Therapy System, KCI, an ACELITY Company, San Antonio, TX) for OA management. A literature review of published evidence, clinical recommendations on managing the OA and a case study demonstrating OA management using OA-NPT have been included.
authors.affiliation: University of Texas Health Science Center, Tyler, TX, USA.|University of Texas, Arlington, TX, USA.|Past Commanding General TXSG Medical Brigade, Austin, TX, USA.|Trinity Mother Frances Health System, Tyler, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Luis G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Fernández
mesh_terms: D034841:Abdominal Cavity / Q000601:surgery*; D000007:Abdominal Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D058107:Abdominal Wound Closure Techniques; D003422:Critical Care / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D054843:Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Damage control surgery; Open abdomen; Temporary abdominal closure