Orthopedic injuries experienced by U.S. prisoners of war during Operation Desert Storm: a descriptive analysis.

U.S. prisoners of war from Operation Desert Storm suffered significant orthopedic injuries. The repatriated prisoners of war (RPOWs) have been medically evaluated over a 3-year period with orthopedic follow-up. A significant proportion of the musculoskeletal injuries were located around the neck and spine, shoulder, and upper extremity. Aircraft ejection was the cause of the majority of these injuries. Lower extremity injuries after ejection, aside from the knee, were not reported. Flail injuries of the lower extremities were absent as well. These results were examined with reference to Vietnam RPOW data.