You respond to the scene of a residential natural gas explosion to find a 36-year-old male patient complaining of a diminished ability to hear, moderate dyspnea, and acute abdominal pain. These symptoms are likely due to what mechanism?

Primary Blast Injuries are caused by the compression of air filled organs by an overpressure wave, typically affecting the tympanic membranes, lungs, stomach, intestines, and sinuses. Toxic Exposure to Natural Gas may cause nausea, diarrhea, dizziness, headache, and labored breathing, but would not explain diminished hearing or acute abdominal pain. Secondary Blast Injury refers to trauma caused by flying shrapnel or debris, while Tertiary Blast Injury refers to trauma caused when a patient is thrown from the blast area and strikes an object or the ground.