gun shot - blood tranfusion

Followup To
Question -
Hi

I'm an author, who, until now has mostly written teen books. I have been asked to write a crime book by a fellow author who likes my style.

Anyway, I need medical information on gunshot wounds and the treatment for them. The scenario is as follows:

A fit and healthy 28 year old woman is shot at fairly close range with a handgun. She is not wearing any protective gear, and the wound is on/in her upper left abdomen.

Many thanks for the information.
Answer -
Syd:

The damage done by a gunshot wound to the left upper quadrant of the abdomen will be determined by the caliber and velocity of the bullet. More by the velocity than the caliber or size of the bullet. .357 and .44 magnum projectiles are traveling faster than the speed of sound and the shock wave caused these bullets will cause a lot of internal damage to the body.

A gunshot to the left upper quadrant will possible strike the Spleen which is a very vascular organ and will bleed quite abit, possibley causing death. The mesentaric is an apron like tissue that hangs down and provides the blood supply to the intestines. This cause also be struck and cause severe bleeding.
Now to treatment. In the prehospital phase, the person will probably be placed in MAST antishock trousers which will hopefully apply pressure to the injured area and tamponade off the bleeding. She will be placed on high flow Oxygen. 2 IVs will be started with large bore needles to replace fluid volume that has been lost in bleeding. If it is suspected that the bullet may have went into or close to her spine, she will be placed onto a long back board to keep her spine stabilized for transport.

After she arrives at the hospital, The Emergency Room doctor will start her care. A surgeon will be called in to evaluate and probably take her to surgery to repair any damage that is done. She will be X-rayed to locate any bullet fragments. She will be "type and crossmatched" for a blood transfusion to replace her blood volume that was lost due to the shooting and during surgery. Any tissue that can't be repaired will be removed and the wound will be cleaned and sown together.


I hope that this answers your questions. If you have more specific questions, please feel free to ask again.


Good Luck on your book

Roger