Factors for Computed Tomography Assessed Progression of Lesions in Patients with Traumatic Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

PURPOSE: Traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (TSAH) is frequently found after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its presence is a powerful predictor for the computed tomography (CT) assessed progression of intracranial lesions. The initial CT findings of progressing intracranial lesions in patients with tSAH are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that may predict the progression of lesions on the initial CT scans of patients with tSAH. METHODS: We evaluated 224 patients with tSAH and who were consecutively admitted from January 1, 2004 to December 31, 2008. The CT progression, the amount of SAH, the site of SAH, the presence and volume of associated intracranial lesion and the bilaterality of lesions were examined to identify the factors to predict CT progression of lesion. The initial and "worst" CT scans were compared. The CT scan changes were classified as "any CT progression" or "significant CT progression" (changes in the Marshall score). RESULTS: Eighty-two patients with tSAH (36.6%) had some CT progression and thirty-seven patients with tSAH (16.5%) had significant CT progression among the patients with tSAH. The initial CT findings according to the Marshall classification, the amount of SAH, the site of SAH and the associated intracranial lesions were significantly related to CT progression (p<0.05). The prognostic model to predict CT evolution, which consisted of the four initial CT findings described above, had high sensitivity (96.6~100%) and a high negative predictive value (94.1~100%). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for the predictive model to predict the CT assessed evolution of SAH lesions was 0.701 (95% CI, 0.633~0.770). CONCLUSION: The prognostic model to predict CT progression of SAH lesions can help emergency medicine physicians decide when to perform repeat head CT scans in patients with tSAH.

Operative Timing in Patients with Traumatic Acute Subdural Hematomas

PURPOSE: Acute traumatic subdural hematoma (SDH) increases after severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) and leads to high mortality. The time to operation is a correctable prognostic factor in TBI, but the timing of hematoma evacuation still remains controversial. We assessed the correlation between operative timing and mortality in traumatic acute SDH. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study over an 8-year period in 163 surgical patients with acute traumatic SDH. Information was obtained about demographic, clinical, and radiological findings, surgical management, and mortality at discharge. RESULTS: Overall, 85 patients (52.1%) died, and 47 patients (28.8%) showed good recovery. The patients who underwent earlier surgery were more likely to have severe head injury. The time to operation in patients that died was shorter than patients with good recovery. The mean time for evacuation [Ed-Is this the same as time to surgery, or is this specifically when the hematoma was removed? Please clarify.] was 351.7+/-220.5 minutes in patients who died and 395.5+/-363.3 minutes in patients with good recovery. Patients undergoing surgery within 4 hours of injury had a mortality rate of 54.4% versus 50.9% receiving surgery after 4 hours. But the risk ratio for time spent to surgery increased until 240 minutes and then decreased. Logistic regression on patients with 240 minutes until surgery showed that the probability of death increased with time to surgery. CONCLUSION: Patients who undergo surgery within 180 minutes after injury have a lower probability of death than those with delayed surgery.