Gunshot Wounds

[454PB]

An interesting video by a doctor, it's nearly 35 minutes long, so don't try watching with a slow internet connection.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tku8YI68-JA#!

[44man]

No need to watch except it is amazing what a human can survive. Most has to do with one lung shot and modern medicine. I shoot deer and if a doctor can save a double lung shot he is God.
Damage I see can not be fixed.
A lot has to do with what a BG is shot with. A nine might need the whole magazine and the BG might live. A .357 with an expanding bullet is like the egg that fell off the wall, you can't put it back together again.
Regardless, tissue damage is terrible.

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

I watched the hole thing , some basic numbers 75% of all gun shot injuries are pistol and people survive about 80% of those

but if rifles were used more than 4% of the time Dr. would have a lot less work to do


survivals is all about getting to surgery fast , starting the IV in the squad but not giving a lot of fluid because watering down blood doesn't help that much , but the IV is a lot easier to start when they still have more blood in them.

It is all about how much bleeding can be cause as to effectiveness

interesting than they confirm that most pistol shot victims walk around and have little affects of being shot for a minute or more till they loose enough blood

as for 9 vs 40 vs 45 little is confirmed

[I'll Make Mine]

interesting than they confirm that most pistol shot victims walk around and have little affects of being shot for a minute or more till they loose enough blood

It'd be interesting to see a statistical study concerning how many pistol shot victims who walk around for a minute or more were shot with a .22, .25, or .32 as opposed to .357, .40/.41, .44 or .45. I think there'll be a couple distinct populations -- those shot with small calibers and FMJ up to around .40, vs. those shot with larger, faster, expanding bullets. I wouldn't expect someone who's just had a full house .357 soft point or hollow point to do much walking around (and never mind hotter rounds like .41 Mag, 10 mm, or .44 Mag) -- but I can see it happening with a .25 ACP or .32 ACP and FMJ.

[Multigunner]

Survivable lung hits on a human torso would most likely head on hits on one lung. Studies on lack of lethality of round nose military bullets such as the early 7mm Mauser and .303 MkVI bullets at moderate velocities showed that unless a rib was hit the bullet would meet little resistence till exiting through the back. The very stable bullets just pushed flesh aside often as not, and since the lungs are mostly open spaces with very tiny blood vessels and capillaries little actual damage was done.
Hits to larger vessels could fill the lungs, and a large enough hole (sucking chest wound)could result in a collapsed lung.
Otherwise they found most soldiers who suffered chest wounds survived if they received prompt medical care, and usually could return to light duty in 6 to 8 weeks.

Thats mainly due to the upright stance of a biped.
Lung hits on game animals are usually from the side, cutting into both lungs on a much longer track, or from either end running the full length of the lung. Quartering away lung shots would disrupt the most tissue, and give the most distance in which the bullet could destabilize and begin tumbling, or expand to the fullest and fragment.

Unless a pistol bullet expands or tumbles wounds are often clean through with little tissue disruption. FMJ bullets are notorious for this.

The heart muscle is tough, and can close up behind a bullet, sometimes with the bullet trapped in a chamber of the heart.
The major cause of death through wounds to the heart is seepage of blood between the cardial sheath and the heart itself, pressure building till the heart can no longer expand and contract properly. If the sheath is torn open then the heart can continue to beat despite holes that won't close on their own. Blood loss being less than from a torn artery.
The quick kill from a pistol shoot to the chest is most often due to asevered pulmonary aorta, which is on the left side where people usually believe the heart to be, the heart actually being almost dead center of the chest.

[migtek02]

As my combat pistol instructor said " you want to hit the bad guy in the good parts" meaning the central nervous/vascular systems. Otherwise he may shoot back and hit you!

[Bulldogger]

I can personally vouch for the "nice-ness" of ball ammo. I was shot in the forearm endwise by a Ruger P9 with 9mm ball, it entered my arm at the radius bone, just behind the wrist, bounced off the bone and (I guess) since it was spiraling from barrel twist it corkscrewed through my arm, following the muscle sheath and exited next to my elbow. If you connect the dots, it should have punched through and shattered my radius. But in fact it corkscrewed through my arm. Blood was very minimal, exit wound same size as and bled less than the entry wound, and Docs didn't give me anything but light bandages. Had to keep it elevated for a couple days to discourage blood pooling inside the arm and risking pressure on muscles (compartment syndrome, they called it). I healed fine (and went and got a CHP as soon as I could stop flinching at the gun range from memories).

Many lessons learned from that event:
1) Ball ammo can be pretty wimpy, overall it's "nicer" to get shot with, if you get the choice.
2) Gunshots are quieter in the open, without range dividers, and they sound quite different when you're IN FRONT of them.
3) Home invaders are annoying
4) "9mm ball: makes a nice clean hole, only hurts for about a month"...