The Neck

Abstract

Major vascular and aero-digestive structures pass through the neck with little or no protection from overlying bone, muscle, or soft tissue. This means an injury to the neck can result in loss of the airway from a tracheal injury, exsanguination from injury to a major blood vessel, or sepsis from a major pharyngeal or esophageal injury. It is also an area that most general surgeons infrequently operate on, so thorough preparation is the only way to make up for the lack of familiarity in an emergent case. If you have a major neck wound I recommend bringing a surgical anatomy text or figure of the neck to the OR with you for reference.

Deployment Experience:

John Oh Trauma Surgeon, 749th Forward Surgical Team, Afghanistan 2005–2006

Trauma Surgeon, 102nd Forward Surgical Team, Baghdad, Iraq 2007–2008