The wounded...

- In medicine a wound is a type of injury in which skin is torn, cut or punctured (an open wound), or where blunt force trauma causes a contusion (closed wound). In pathology, it specifically refers to a sharp injury which damages the dermis of the skin.



- Open wounds can be classified according to the object that caused the wound. The types of open wound are:


- Incisions or incised wounds, caused by a clean, sharp-edged object such as a knife, a razor or a glass splinter.
- Lacerations, irregular tear-like wounds caused by some blunt trauma.
- Abrasions (grazes), superficial wounds in which the topmost layer of skin (the epidermis) is scraped off. Abrasions are often caused by a sliding fall onto a rough surface.
- Puncture wounds, caused by an object puncturing the skin, such as a nail or a needle.
- Penetration wounds, cxaused by an object such as a knife entering and coming out from the skin.
- Gunshot wounds, caused by a bullet or similar projectile driving into or through the body. There may be two wounds, one at the site of entry and one at the site of exit, such is generally known as a through-and-through.



- Closed wounds have fewer categories, but are just as dangerous as open wounds. The types of closed wounds are:


- Contusions, more commonly known as bruises, caused by a blunt force trauma that damages tissue under the skin.
- Hematomas, also called a blood tumor, caused by damage to a blood vessel that in turn causes blood to collect under the skin.
- Crush injury, caused by a great or extreme amount of force applied over a long period of time.
- Chronic and Acute wounds, Acute or traumatic wounds are the result of injuries that disrupt the tissue. Chronic wounds are those that are caused by a relatively slow process that leads to tissue damage. Chronic wounds include pressure, venous, and diabetic ulcers.



- From the Classical period to the Medieval period, the body and the soul were believed to be intimately connected, based on several theories put forth by the pilosopher Plato. Wounds on the body were believed to correlate with wounds to the soul and vice versa; wounds were seen as an outward sign of an inward illness. Thus, a man who was wounded physically in a serious way was said to be hindered not only physically but spiritually as well. If the soul was wounded, that wound may also eventually become physically manifest, revealing the true state of the soul. Wounds were also seen as writing on the "tablet" of the body. Wounds gotten in war, for example, told the stiory of a soldier ibn a form which all could see and understand, and the wounds of a martyr told the story of their faith.