Hospital records and post-mortem findings were reviewed for 33 traffic deaths in which the primary injuries were intra-abdominal. Only one case died before reaching the hospital. Half of these lives might have been salvaged by prompt and proper diagnosis and treatment. The investigation suggested a need to improve several aspects of hospital care of trauma patients. In particular, over one-third of the cases in this series demonstrated a need for more aggressive resuscitation of patients in hypovolemic shock. Nearly half of all cases involved either failure to operate or excessive delay in surgery, despite symptoms of abdominal injury. The importance of evaluating the results of medical care of the injured is emphasized by the unusual distribution of these deaths among various hospitals. The study points to the importance of seeing that severely injured patients reach appropriately trained physicians.