Terminal ballistics of the Russian AK 74 assault rifle: two wounded patients and experimental findings.

Objective: To study the effects of the Russian AK 74 assault rifle missile (5.45 x 39 mm) on an experimental model and on two wounded patients.

Design: Experimental and clinical study.

Substitute ellipse of the permanent cavity in gelatin blocks and debridement of gunshot wounds.

A new method in terminal ballistics is presented that allows precise numerical analysis of characteristics of the permanent cavity by computed tomography (CT). Shots were made with a Russian AK-74 assault rifle (5.45 mm) into gelatin used as a tissue simulant.