Penetrating Neck Injury Evolving into Thyroid Injury with Empty Cartridge
Article information
Abstract
Gunshot injury is a relatively uncommon occurrence in South Korea. Here, we present a case of neck injury caused by an empty cartridge shot.
CASE
A 24-year-old male with no medical history was admitted to the emergency room with penetrating neck injury caused during his Reserved Forces Military Training. The patient was shot with a sharp object into his neck from behind while he was looking at a machine gun shooting process. Upon admission, he was found to be stable with one injury on his neck. His plain X-ray and CT (Fig. 1.) demanded an emergency surgery. Accordingly, we conducted a planned subtotal thyroidectomy (Fig. 2.). The patient recovered without complications.
DISCUSSION
The characteristic of a wound caused by a gunshot injury depends on the characteristics of bullet yawing, the position, and the section of the wound ballistics or profile [1]. Although gunshot injury is a rare event in South Korea, proper management is mandatory for handling future cases.
Notes
Conflict of Interest Statement
No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.