Characterization of spinal injuries sustained by American service members killed in Iraq and Afghanistan: a study of 2,089 instances of spine trauma.

Background: This study sought to characterize spine injuries among soldiers killed in Iraq or Afghanistan whose autopsy results were stored by the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System.

Methods: The Armed Forces Medical Examiner System data set was queried to identify American military personnel who sustained a spine injury in conjunction with wounds that resulted in death during deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan from 2003 to 2011. Demographic and injury-specific characteristics were abstracted for each individual identified.