Unveiling the Natural History of Category 4 Tropical Cyclones: The Puerto Rico Trauma Hospital Experience after Hurricane Maria.

Objectives: The hazardous environmental conditions hurricanes create might increase injury incidence almost 7 times. Therefore, a cohort study was performed at the Puerto Rico Trauma Hospital to compare morbidity and mortality patterns of patients after Hurricane Maria with a control period.

Methods: Admissions from September 20, 2017, through January 20, 2018, constituted the post-Maria period (473 patients); the corresponding months of the previous year comprised the pre-Maria period (439 patients).

Traumatic esophageal perforation in Puerto Rico Trauma Hospital: A case-series.

Background: Esophageal injuries are rare, life-threatening, events with an overall reported incidence of less than 3%. In rare cases, trauma due to blunt or penetrating injuries cause esophageal perforations, which account for less than 15% of all esophageal injuries.

Materials And Methods: A case-series study was conducted to describe the outcomes and management of all the traumatic esophageal injuries at the Puerto Rico Trauma Hospital (PRTH) from 2000 through 2017.