Background: In 2009, during the war in Afghanistan, the increasing number of head injuries led to the deployment of a military neurosurgeon at the Kabul International Airport (KaIA) medical treatment facility, in March 2010. The main goal of this study was to depict the neurosurgical activity in this centre and to analyse its different aspects.
Method: A retrospective study of all the neurosurgical patients treated in KaIA from March 2010 to June 2013.
Results: Three hundred and seventy-three interventions performed by the neurosurgeon deployed were reported for 373 surgeries, in 335 patients, representing 10.6 % of the overall surgical activity of the centre. Among the 69 interventions performed on soldiers, 57 surgeries were undertaken in emergency (82.6 %), while 12 were elective procedures (17.4 %). On the other hand, 289 surgeries were performed in civilian Afghans, with 126 emergency procedures in (43.6 %), against 163 elective interventions (56.4 %). Among the 44.5 % (n = 149) of the traumatic casualties, cerebral lesions represented 28.7 % (n = 96) and spinal lesions 12.4 % (n = 42). Ninety patients had multiple injuries. Additionally, patients without trauma accounted for 55.5 % (n = 186) of the overall population. Thus, 49 % (n = 164) were operated on for non-traumatic lesion of the spine. These were mostly civilian Afghans treated under medical aid to the population (90.2 %, n = 148/164).
Conclusions: The military neurosurgeon had two roles in KaIA: both to support the armed forces and to manage medical aid to the civilian population. This study gives food for thought on the neurosurgical needs in modern warfare, and on the skills required for the military neurosurgeon.
Keywords: Afghanistan; Damage control surgery; Medical aid to population; Military neurosurgery; Traumatology; War-related injury.