RT Book, Section A1 Barlotta, Kevin S. A1 Stack, Lawrence B. A1 Knoop, Kevin J. A2 Knoop, Kevin J. A2 Stack, Lawrence B. A2 Storrow, Alan B. A2 Thurman, R. Jason SR Print(0) ID 1181040919 T1 Impaled Foreign Body T2 The Atlas of Emergency Medicine, 5e YR 2021 FD 2021 PB McGraw-Hill PP New York, NY SN 9781260134940 LK accessemergencymedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1181040919 RD 2024/03/28 AB Stab wounds cause injury to tissue in their path. Stab wounds to the chest, in addition to causing pneumothorax or hemothorax, may also cause life-threatening injuries to the heart and major blood vessels. One-quarter of anterior abdominal stab wounds do not penetrate the peritoneum. Half of those that do penetrate require no surgical intervention. For these reasons, local exploration, focused assessment with sonography for trauma (FAST), contrast-enhanced CT, and serial examinations are typical management strategies. Penetrating flank injuries are evaluated with contrast-enhanced CT. The size of the external wound frequently underestimates the internal injury. Impaled foreign bodies to the chest or abdomen pose a complex problem. The object inflicting the injury may also be preventing significant blood loss and therefore should be removed by the trauma surgeon in the operating room.