Comparison of Injury Pattern in Victims of Bear (Ursus thibetanus) and Leopard (Panthera pardus) Attacks. A Study from a Tertiary Care Center in Kashmir.

INTRODUCTION

Patients injured in bear and leopard attacks present with different patterns of injuries and have different mortality rates. A common protocol may not be suitable for the management of injuries inflicted by these two large wild animals.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective study was conducted by the Department of Orthopedics, Government Medical College Srinagar (India) to compare the injury patterns among victims of bear and leopard attacks.

RESULTS

One hundred and fifty-five cases with 120 (77.4%) bear and 35 (22.5%) leopard attacks were recorded over a period of 43 months. Eighty-six males and 34 females including two children were injured in bear attacks. Eleven males and 24 females including 13 children were attacked by leopards. The leopard attacks were usually fatal (48.5%), whereas the bear attacks were mostly nonfatal in nature (1.6%). The patients had a combination of injuries affecting multiple parts of the body. Injuries of the cervical spine, cervical cord, major vessels of neck, pharynx and eye were striking observations in leopard attacks. Fractures of the upper limb, facial and skull bones were common in the victims of bear attacks. The survivors were treated as per advanced life trauma support, with an average follow-up of 24.5 months (5-42 months).

CONCLUSION

Wild animals usually attack in remote areas, where composite trauma centers do not exist, and the urgent referrals of these patients will have a significant impact on the final outcome. The management of these patients requires a team approach involving all of the subspecialties of traumatology.