Impalement Chest Injury: A Narrow Miss of Vital Structures

Impalement injuries to the chest mostly result from high energy injury from a sharp protruding object. They are most often fatal, but cases of many survivors have been recorded, just as the index case being reported. The patient sustained injury as a passenger in a truck which lost control, and a sharp stationary wood by the road side got stuck onto his chest. He presented to the hospital 5hours after the injury. He was then taken to theatre where the impaled object was removed successfully aided by a thoracotomy for proximal vascular control under general anaesthesia. Surprisingly, no major intrathoracic injury was seen. The patient recovered fully without any disability.