Vietnam (1972) to Afghanistan (2014): The state of military trauma care and research, past to present

As the United States approaches the terminal phases of the 13-year war in Afghanistan, it is appropriate to take stock of the current state of military trauma care and research and compare that with what existed during the terminal stages of the lengthy conflict in the Republic of Vietnam (RVN) 41 years ago. Like all major transitions in history, relevant observations can bemade and lessons learned by considering the evolution and improvements in the organization and delivery of combat casualty care that have occurred during the years between thewar in the RVN and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq (Figs. 1Y2). That review has identified the genesis ofmany aspects of currentmilitary trauma care and illuminated the maturation of care over the past four decades that has improved the outcomes of injured war fighters. Improvement in military trauma care can be related to changes in personnel resources, development of a joint service trauma system, and the application of knowledge and material solutions generated by a military-specific trauma research program.