Outcome in the Management of Penetrating Venous Injury

The authors report on the management of 33 patients with penetrating venous injuries, 25 due to gunshot wounds and 8 due to stab wounds. During the period of this study we treated 35 venous injuries and two patients, both following femoral artery and vein repairs and limb salvage were lost to follow-up and are excluded. Thirty-two had associ ated thoracic, intraabdominal, or arterial injuries. Duplex imaging was performed in 14 patients and venography in 12. They assessed all 27 survivors for postoperative sequelae. Mean follow-up time was twenty months, ranging from three months to three years. Four patients had suprarenal inferior vena cava injuries. All 4 underwent repair and 2 survived. Seven others had infrarenal vena cava injuries. Three of 5 survived following repair and the other 2 survived after caval ligation. Three patients had iliac vein injuries. Two died after repair and 1 survived with ligation. Seventeen patients had injuries of the femoral vein. Thirteen underwent repair, 7 of whom remain...