Management of Acute Traumatic Wounds in an Emergency Structure in a Developing Country, Case of University Clinics of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The objective of this descriptive study is to present the management of acute traumatic wounds in an emergency structure in a developing country, the case of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Sampling was exhaustive and covered a total of 232 patients, each presenting a single wound and meeting our inclusion criteria. The age group of 20 to 29 years was the most represented, with a proportion of 27.2%. A delay of <6 hours between the trauma and arrival at the hospital was present in 134 patients (57.8%). The lesions observed were contused wounds in 180 patients (77.6%). The wounds were localized to the lower limbs in 139 patients (59.9%), to the trunk in 35 patients (15.1%), to the head and neck for 34 patients (14.2%), and to the upper limbs in 24 patients (10.3%). Surgical trimming, whether or not associated with wound suturing (84%), was the most performed surgical procedure. Monoantibiotic therapy and tetanus seroprophylaxis supervised the surgery. Only one patient out of the 134 (0.4%) who consulted before the 6 experienced an infection compared to 5 out of 69 patients (2.2%) who consulted between 12 and 24 hours. The infection rate remains very low (<3%), and the lesions generally heal by first intention.