Introduction:

Pulmonary function can be affected months after blunt thoracic trauma. However, the data reported are scarce.

Objective:

The objective of the study was to evaluate pulmonary function at 3 and 6 months in subjects with thoracic injuries suffered in combat.

Materials and methods:

Study of cases and controls evaluating subjects with chest trauma at 3 and 6 months after it, the controls were healthy soldiers with combat experience. Spirometric variables, lung volumes, Cooper test, 6 min walking test, and cardiopulmonary exercise test were evaluated between 2011 and 2016.

Results:

Forty-five male subjects entered the study, 25 cases evaluated 3 months and 11 at 6 months after the trauma, compared with 20 controls. After 3 months of evaluation, the subjects wounded in combat walked 43.63 m (p = 0.007) less when compared to the control group in the 6 min walk and the post-vital capacity was 0.88 l (p < 0.001) lower at 6 months than in the control group. When comparing the subjects with chest trauma evaluated, the only variables that showed a statistically significant recovery were the pre-forced expiratory flow (p = 0.005) and 6 min walking test (p = 0.002).

Conclusion:

Subjects with chest trauma in combat show a decrease in lung volumes and a cardiopulmonary exercise test at 3 and 6 months of evaluation.

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