Duodenal Injuries

Purpose of Review Duodenal injuries are rare but challenging injuries to manage for the acute care surgeon. These injuries often occur concomitantly with other organs and major vascular structures. Once diagnosed, these injuries have been managed in a variety of ways and historical beliefs are slowly being replaced by evidence when confronting some of these difficult injuries. This review reintroduces the important topic of duodenal trauma and attempts to discuss the mechanisms, diagnosis, outcomes, and most importantly, management of duodenal trauma. Recent Findings Management will be outlined along with organ injury scoring. We will examine past surgical options such as complex reconstructions and adjuncts that have been called into question with evidence that shows primary repair should be attempted whenever possible. Summary Operative management of duodenal trauma has progressed and simplified. The evidence demonstrates improved outcomes with primary duodenal repair when possible.