A COMBINED APPROACH TO THE REMOVAL OF METALLIC FOREIGN BODIES FROM SOFT TISSUES

Introduction. The ongoing hostilities in Ukraine have led to a significant number of victims with gunshot wounds. A distinguishing characteristic of modern firearms and explosive weapons is the impact of projectiles that cause injuries in the form of fragments, bullets, secondary and tertiary shrapnel, and other foreign bodies (e.g., glass, plastic, soil, or clothing remnants) that remain embedded in the victim's tissues. Shrapnel wounds account for 56.7% of all combat injuries. The treatment of gunshot and bullet wounds focuses on the removal of foreign bodies and the restoration of the anatomical and physiological integrity of the affected tissues. However, there is currently no standardized approach to the removal of such foreign bodies. The objective of this study was to enhance outcomes in the removal of metallic foreign bodies by employing a combined method during repeated surgical wound treatment. Participants and methods. The study involved two research groups. The first group (Group I) consisted of 191 wounded individuals whose metal fragments were removed using the traditional method with magnetic instruments. The second group (Group II) included 173 patients whose foreign bodies were removed using a combination of a mobile X-ray unit and ultrasound guidance. Results. The findings demonstrated that the combined method for removing foreign bodies offers significant advantages over the traditional approach. The combined method increased the removal efficiency by 20.6%. Intraoperative complications were 5.2 times less frequent in Group II compared to Group I (1.7% vs. 8.9%). Postoperative pain levels, measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), were significantly lower in Group II (4.5 ± 0.32) compared to Group I (7.5 ± 0.3). Additionally, the combined method effectively minimized the risk of inflammatory processes and reduced the incidence of postoperative complications. These results highlight the combined method as a superior approach for the removal of metallic foreign bodies, improving both surgical outcomes and patient recovery.