Blunt Cardiac Injury in Trauma Patients with Thoracic Aortic Injury

Table 1

Grading of cardiac injury by the American Association for Surgery of Trauma. Adapted from [21].

Grade	ECG	Pathology
I	Nonspecific ST or T wave change, premature atrial or ventricular contraction, persistent sinus tachycardia	Blunt or penetrating pericardial wound without cardiac injury, tamponade, or herniation
II	Heart block, ischemic changes without cardiac failure	Penetrating tangential cardiac wound up to but not extending through endocardium without tamponade
III	Sustained or multifocal ventricular contractions
IV		Blunt or penetrating cardiac injury with septal rupture, pulmonary or tricuspid incompetence, papillary muscle dysfunction, or distal coronary artery occlusion producing cardiac failure
		Blunt or penetrating cardiac injury with aortic or mitral incompetence
		Blunt or penetrating cardiac injury of the right ventricle, right or left atrium
V		Blunt or penetrating cardiac injury with proximal coronary artery occlusion
		Blunt or penetrating left ventricular perforation
		Stellate injuries <50% tissue loss of the right ventricle, right or left atrium
VI		Blunt avulsion of the heart