Management of asymptomatic patients following stab wound to the chest

Background: Asymptomotic stab wounds in the chest may be complicated if there is a delay. Objective: Determining the incidence of delayed complications and time required to discover them. Methods: In This follow-up study, 92 patients,admitted to Shahid Rajaee hospital between september 2000 and april 2001, were studied. They were observed in hospital for 24 hours. Clinical examination and chest radiography were performed at the time of admission, 6 hours and finally 24 hours later. Findings: Of 92 patients with 98 thoracic wounds,six (6.1%) were complicated by pneumothorax, hemothorax or pneumothorax. All of these complications showed themselves in the first 6 hours period. No additional complications were revealed after that time. Conclusion: To reveal the delayed complications, 6 hours observation in hospital seems to be sufficient.