Abstract
As mentioned in Chap. 3, terminal ballistics is the scientific discipline concerned with the interaction between projectiles or rounds and the objects they impact; when they impact biological tissue this study is called wound ballistics. This chapter seeks to distil the multiple, complex and interacting factors that influence gunshot wounding (GSW) into a more coherent but comprehensive and clinical-relevant text.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Hunter JFRS, Home ESB. A Treatise on the Blood, inflammation, and gunshot wounds, … to which is prefixed a short account of the author’s life by … Everard Home [the Editor]. London: James Webster; 1794.
Hopkinson DA, Marshall TK. Firearm injuries. Br J Surg. 1967;54(5):344–53.
Coupland RM, Rothschild MA, Thali MJ. Wound ballistics-basics and application. 3rd ed. Berlin: Springer; 2008.
Fackler ML, Peters CE. Ascribing local, regional, and distant injuries to the sonic pressure wave. J Trauma. 1989;1455:29–10.
Fackler ML. The ‘Strasbourg tests:’ another gunwriter/bullet salesman fraud? Wound Ballistics Rev. 1992;1(4):10–1.
Harvey EN, McMillen JH. An experimental study of shock waves resulting from the impact of high velocity missiles on animal tissues. J Exp Med. 1947;85(3):321–8.
Suneson A, Hansson HA, Kjellstrom BT, Lycke E, Seeman T. Pressure waves caused by high-energy missiles impair respiration of cultured dorsal root ganglion cells. J Trauma. 1990;30(4):484–8.
Marshall EP, Sanow EJ. Handgun stopping power: the definitive study, vol. xi. Boulder, CO: Paladin Press; 1992. p. 224.
Suneson A, Hansson HA, Seeman T. Peripheral high-energy missile hits cause pressure changes and damage to the nervous system: experimental studies on pigs. J Trauma. 1987;27(7):782–9.
Fackler ML. Wound ballistics. A review of common misconceptions. JAMA. 1988;259(18):2730–6.
Peters CE, Sebourn CL. Wound ballistics of unstable projectiles. Part II: temporary cavity formation and tissue damage. J Trauma. 1996;40(3 Suppl):S16–21.
Berlin R, Gelin LE, Janzon B, Lewis DH, Rybeck B, Sandegard J, Seeman T. Local effects of assault rifle bullets in live tissues. Acta Chir Scand Suppl. 1976;459:1–76.
Albreht M, Scepanovic D, Ceramilac A, Milivojevic V, Berger S, Tasic G, Tatic V, Todoric M, Popovic D, Nanusevic N. Experimental soft tissue wounds caused by standard military rifles. Acta Chir Scand Suppl. 1979;489:185–98.
Thoresby FP, Watts JC. Gas gangrene of the high-velocity missile wound. Br J Surg. 1967;54(1):25–9.
Adams DB. Wound ballistics: a review. Mil Med. 1982;147(10):831–5.
Fackler ML. Muscle devitalization in high-energy missile wounds, and its dependence on energy transfer. J Trauma. 1986;26(3):297.
Fackler ML, Malinowski JA. The wound profile: a visual method for quantifying gunshot wound components. J Trauma. 1985;25(6):522–9.
Fackler ML, O'Benar JD. Basic physics of the projectile-tissue interaction. Mil Med. 1987;152(10):531–4.
Hollerman JJ, Fackler ML, Coldwell DM, Ben-Menachem Y. Gunshot wounds: 1. Bullets, ballistics, and mechanisms of injury. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1990;155(4):685–90.
Hollerman JJ, Fackler ML, Coldwell DM, Ben-Menachem Y. Gunshot wounds: 2. Radiology. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1990;155(4):691–702.
Danel RA. Bullet wounds of the lungs. An experimental study. Surgery. 1944;15:774.
DeMuth WE Jr, Smith JM. High-velocity bullet wounds of muscle and bone: the basis of rational early treatment. J Trauma. 1966;6(6):744–55.
Hopkinson DA, Watts JC. Studies in experimental missile injuries of skeletal muscle. Proc R Soc Med. 1963;56:461–8.
Fackler ML, Breteau JP, Courbil LJ, Taxit R, Glas J, Fievet JP. Open wound drainage versus wound excision in treating the modern assault rifle wound. Surgery. 1989;105(5):576–84.
Bowyer GW, Rossiter ND. Management of gunshot wounds of the limbs. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1997;79(6):1031–6.
DeMuth WE Jr. Bullet velocity and design as determinants of wounding capability: an experimental study. J Trauma. 1966;6(2):222–32.
Peters CE, Sebourn CL, Crowder HL. Wound ballistics of unstable projectiles. Part I: projectile yaw growth and retardation. J Trauma. 1996;40(Suppl 3):S10–5.
Penn-Barwell JG, Sargeant ID, Severe Lower Extremity Combat Trauma Study G. Gun-shot injuries in UK military casualties - features associated with wound severity. Injury. 2016;47(5):1067–71.
Coupland RM, Hoikka V, Sjoeklint OG, Cuenod P, Cauderay GC, Doswald-Beck L. Assessment of bullet disruption in armed conflicts. Lancet. 1992;339(8784):35–7.
Knapp TP, Patzakis MJ, Lee J, Seipel PR, Abdollahi K, Reisch RB. Comparison of intravenous and oral antibiotic therapy in the treatment of fractures caused by low-velocity gunshots. A prospective, randomized study of infection rates. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1996;78(8):1167–71.
DeMuth WE Jr. High velocity bullet wounds of the thorax. Am J Surg. 1968;115(5):616–25.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Penn-Barwell, J.G., Stevenson, T. (2017). The Effect of Projectiles on Tissues. In: Breeze, J., Penn-Barwell, J., Keene, D., O'Reilly, D., Jeyanathan, J., Mahoney, P. (eds) Ballistic Trauma. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61364-2_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61364-2_5
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-61363-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-61364-2
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)