ABSTRACT

Cranial and spinal cord injuries are the main topics of neurosurgery and they require significant knowledge and experience. While wars have been the most frequent cause of such injuries throughout history, terrorism has come to the forefront today. In addition, injuries with bullet and penetrating tools are more frequent, but injuries due to particles from explosive materials are now an important component of the neurotrauma practice. In the last century, serious steps have been taken in the treatment of cranial and spinal cord injuries, and mortality and morbidity have been significantly reduced. In this review, we will first give detailed information about the concepts of terrorism and war, then physiopathology, radiology and treatment of cranial and spinal cord injuries will be discussed in the context of current data.