‘No zone’ approach to the management of stable penetrating neck injuries: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: Aim: to review outcomes of the ‘no zone’ approach to penetrating neck injuries (PNIs) with the advent of high-fidelity computed tomography-angiography (CT-A) in order to determine the most appropriate management for stable PNIs. Design: Systematic review. Population: Retrospective and prospective cohort studies of patients who sustained penetrating neck trauma, as defined by an injury which penetrates the platysma, and whose initial management involved CT-A evaluation. Methods: An extensive literature search was performed in July 2019 using the following databases: Pubmed Central, EMBASE, Medline and Cochrane CENTRAL. Only studies published in English from the last 15 years were ..