[The magnitude and the structure of ENT sanitary losses in modern local armed conflicts].

The objective of the present study was to estimate the magnitude and the structure of ENT losses in modern local armed conflicts. We have considered characteristics of battle injuries inflicted in modern wars based on the materials collected during the armed conflicts in the Caucasus during 1999-2002 and stored in the Military Medical Museum (MMM) of the Russian Defense Ministry. A total of 5608 case records of the surgical treatment of mechanical injuries were analysed including 4002 gunshot wounds and 1606 closed injuries (contusions). ENT and neck wounds were the main and concomitant injuries in 102 and 107 subjects respectively who accounted for 2.5% and 2.7% of all the wounded servicemen. Fifty five (3.93%) and 21 (1.3%) of the 1606 subjects had a closed ENT and neck wound as the leading and concomitant injury, respectively. According to the materials collected in MMM, ENT contusion was the main injury in 111 (25%) of the 410 servicemen who had received contused wounds in the armed conflict of 1999-2002.