Intraoperative management of renal gunshot injuries: is mandatory exploration of Gerota's fascia necessary?

Background: Many trauma surgeons and trauma centers use routine exploration of Gerota's fascia (GE) for renal gunshot wounds (RGSW). The purpose of this study was to assess whether RGSW can be selectively explored for patients who undergo exploratory laparotomy.

Methods: Retrospective 10-year review of all patients who underwent exploratory laparotomy for abdominal gunshot wounds and had RGSW selectively explored.