The role of a multidisciplinary team in chest wall trauma management

Trauma represents the leading cause of death in patients younger than 45 years old. The introduction of multidisciplinary trauma teams has resulted in an improvement in patients` outcome. The thoracic surgeon plays an invaluable role as a member of the multidisciplinary team that includes an emergency physician, surgical figure, an anaesthetist, a radiology technician plus a number of nurses. Thorough knowledge of the physiological mechanism of injury and an intensive training have contributed massively in improving the outcomes. Different surgical approaches have to be considered in order to provide the best outcome to the acute patient with chest injury.