Terrorist bombing with a ‘Molotov cocktail’ inside travelling cars: an old weapon for a new burn syndrome?

Abstract

The ‘Molotov cocktail’ terrorist weapon which is thrown into a travelling car has given a new type of injury to people who sustain massive smoke inhalation together with disfiguring burns of face, thighs, hands and chest, and post-traumatic psychological disorder. The combination of petrol ignition with the synthetic fumes inside the care is a unique occurrence with a high morbidity and mortality which is difficult to treat and to manage. We propose to show that the combination of all the above components can be defined as the ‘Molotov cocktail’ burn syndrome.