Coagulopatía Aguda Traumática y hemorragia masiva: una relación que debemos conocer / Acute traumatic coagulopathy and massive hemorrhage: a relationship that we should know

Los traumatismos y accidentes ocupan una proporción relevante de las causas de muerte para el grupo de edad que abarca desde la primera infancia hasta la cuarta década de la vida. En los últimos diez años la mortalidad mundial por traumatismos se incrementó en el 20 por ciento. En esos casos se estima que las hemorragias aportan entre el 30 y 70 por ciento de la mortalidad. Además, la hemorragia masiva es conocida por ser una de las principales causas de muerte intraoperatoria en pacientes sin traumatismos, sobre todo en aquellos sometidos a intervenciones que implican lesiones tisulares importantes. En alrededor de un tercio o más de esos pacientes se desarrolla una coagulopatía aguda asociada al trauma o coagulopatía aguda traumática, que obedece a mecanismos fisiopatogénicos complejos, superpuestos y dependientes en gran medida de la naturaleza del evento que originó la pérdida sanguínea. Esta coagulopatía se define básicamente como una reducción funcional de la fortaleza del coágulo con cambios mínimos en los tiempos de coagulación. Su aparición incrementa el riesgo de sangrado masivo, la utilización de mayores volúmenes de componentes sanguíneos e implica una mayor probabilidad de fallecer por hemorragia. Su identificación temprana mediante técnicas de evaluación hemostáticas como el TP/INR, y pruebas viscoelásticas (tromboelastometría rotacional y tromboelastografía), modifica los riesgos y aporta un blanco terapéutico factible que constituye la base de las nuevas estrategias transfusionales en el enfrentamiento a los sangrados masivos(AU)

Accidents and different kind of injuries account for a relevant proportion of death causes from childhood to the fourth decade of life. Death from injury has increased by 20 percent over the last decade. Hemorrhages are estimated to cause between 30 to 70 percent of those deaths. Massive bleeding is also known for being one of the main causes of death during surgery in cases with extensive tissue damage from not traumatic origin. In around one third or more of such patients an acute traumatic coagulopathy or trauma associated coagulopathy is developed. This phenomenon obeys to complex, overlapping mechanisms which would be in its major part dependent on the event that caused the blood lost. This kind of coagulopathy can be defined as a functional reduction in clot strength with only minimal changes in clotting times. Its presence increases the risk of a massive bleeding, the use of larger volumes of blood components and the likelihood of dying by the hemorrhage. The early identification of acute traumatic coagulopathy through hemostatic tests such as TP/INR and viscoelastic assays as thrombelastography or rotational thrombelastometry modifies those risks since it brings a feasible therapeutic target to aim at, becoming the cornerstone for the newer transfusional strategies while facing massive bleedings(AU)

Triada mortal en pacientes politraumatizados, relación conmortalidad y severidad / Prognostic value of the lethal triad among patients with multiple trauma

Background: Patients who have suffered multiple traumatic injuries, have a serious risk for death. Hypothermia, acidosis and coagulopathy are three complications in these patients, whose presence is known as lethal triad and indicates bad prognosis.Aim: To determine if the lethal triad in multiple trauma patients is associated withhigher mortality and Injury Score Severity (ISS). Material and Methods: Onehundred multiple trauma patients aged 26 to 56 years (90 males), admitted toan emergency room, were studied. Body temperature, prothrombin time, partialthromboplastin time, platelet count and blood gases were determined on admission.Results: Twenty six patients had the lethal triad and 15% died in the emergencyroom within the first 6 hours. No death was recorded among the 74 patients withoutthe lethal triad. The mean ISS among patients with and without the lethal triad was31.7 and 25.6, respectively (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The presence of the lethal triadamong patients with multiple trauma is associated with a higher mortality and ISS.

Distúrbio de coagulação em crianças e adolescentes com traumatismo cranioencefálico moderado e grave / Coagulation disorder in children and adolescents with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury

OBJETIVOS: Descrever o perfil epidemiológico de crianças e adolescentes com traumatismo cranioencefálico moderado e grave internados em unidade de tratamento intensivo; descrever a freqüência de alterações na coagulação destes pacientes; determinar a relação entre a coagulopatia e a gravidade do trauma; analisar os fatores associados à coagulopatia; e verificar a influência da coagulopatia na mortalidade desses pacientes. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal com 301 pacientes de até 16 anos internados em terapia intensiva devido a traumatismo cranioencefálico moderado e grave, compreendendo período de 5 anos. O perfil de coagulação foi associado com achados clínicos, epidemiológicos e tomográficos. Análises univariada e multivariada foram empregadas para verificar a associação entre presença de coagulopatia e mortalidade. RESULTADOS: A idade mínima foi de 23 dias, e a máxima, de 16 anos (média de 7,9 anos). Cerca de 77 por cento dos pacientes apresentaram coagulopatia, cuja ocorrência esteve diretamente associada à gravidade do trauma, mas não ao aumento da mortalidade. Os fatores associados com a presença de coagulopatia foram: gravidade do traumatismo cranioencefálico (OR = 2,83; IC95 por cento 1,58-5,07), diagnóstico de edema e ingurgitamento cerebral à tomografia computadorizada de crânio (OR = 2,11; IC95 por cento 1,13-4,07) e ocorrência de trauma torácico e/ou abdominal (OR = 2,07; IC95 por cento 1,11-4,00). Aproximadamente 35 por cento dos pacientes morreram. Em análise multivariada, os fatores que se relacionaram ao aumento do risco de morrer foram: ocorrência de distúrbios de sódio (OR = 5,56; IC95 por cento 2,90-10,65), hipotensão no centro de tratamento intensivo (OR = 12,58; IC95 por cento 4,40-35,00) e síndrome do desconforto respiratório agudo (OR = 13,57; IC95 por cento 1,51-121,66). CONCLUSÃO: O surgimento de coagulopatia é uma complicação freqüente nos pacientes vítimas de traumatismo cranioencefálico moderado e grave. Apesar...

OBJECTIVES: To describe the epidemiological profile of children and adolescents with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury admitted to an intensive care unit; to describe the frequency of coagulation disorders in these patients; to determine the relationship between coagulopathy and trauma severity; to assess the factors associated with coagulopathy; and to assess the effect of coagulopathy on the mortality of these patients. METHODS: Cross-sectional study with 301 patients aged up to 16 years admitted to an intensive care unit due to moderate to severe traumatic brain injury, carried out over a 5-year period. The coagulation profile was associated with clinical, epidemiological and CT findings. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to check the association between coagulopathy and mortality. RESULTS: Minimum age was 23 days, and maximum age was 16 years (mean of 7.9 years). About 77 percent of patients had coagulopathy, whose occurrence was directly associated with the severity of the trauma, but not with the rise in mortality. The factors associated with the presence of coagulopathy were the following: severity of the traumatic brain injury (OR = 2.83; 95 percentCI 1.58-5.07), diagnosis of brain swelling on cranial computed tomography (OR = 2.11; 95 percentCI 1.13-4.07) and occurrence of chest and/or abdominal injury (OR = 2.07; 95 percentCI 1.11-4.00). Approximately 35 percent of patients died. The multivariate analysis showed that the factors associated with an increased risk of death were presence of sodium disorders (OR = 5.56; 95 percentCI 2.90-10.65), hypotension in the intensive care unit (OR = 12.58; 95 percentCI 4.40-35.00) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (OR = 13.57; 95 percentCI 1.51-121.66). CONCLUSION:The development of coagulopathy is a frequent complication in patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Even though it is not closely associated with death in this study, it may be regarded...

Pattern of coagulopathy in viperidae snake bite

The study was carried out in the Department of Physiology, Isra University, Hyderabad. Seventy three cases of viperidae snake bite were studied to observe the pattern of coagulopathy. All had prolonged clotting time at the time of admission. Prothrombin time was increased in 56 cases, activated partial thromboplastin time was increased in 63 cases, bleeding time was normal in all cases. Platelet count was decreased in 28 cases and fibrinogen levels were decreased in 36 cases. Disseminated intravascular coagulation was found to be the predominant pattern of coagulopathy in viperidae snake bite cases

Cirrosis hepática y coagulopátia

Evaluamos de manera prospectiva las manifestaciones clínicas y el perfil de coagulación en un grupo de 17 enfermos con cirrosis hepática avanzada y en cinco controles, durante un período de cuatro meses. Analizamos las complicaciones hemorrágicas y la mortalidad en relación con las alteraciones de la hemostasia. Concluimos que los defectos de la coagulación en la cirrosis hepática participan en forma importante tanto en la aparición de complicaciones como en el pronóstico de la enfermedad. Objetivos : Determinar las anomalías de la coagulación sanguínea en pacientes con cirrosis hepática avanzada y en un grupo control, para correlacionarlas con las manifestaciones clínicas, las complicaciones y el pronóstico de la enfermedad. Diseño : Estudio descriptivo, comparativo y prospectivo. Ubicación : Hospital Universitario de Barranquilla. Tiempo de duración : Cuatro meses. Pacientes : 17 pacientes con cirrosis hepática avanzada y cinco como grupo control. Resultados : De los 17 cirróticos, 82 por ciento tenía el TP prolongado, 58 por ciento tenía trombocitopenia, 70 por ciento hipofibrinogenemia. Además, 82 por ciento presentó productos de degradación (PDF) elevados y del fibrinogeno 65 porciento alteraciones de la agregación plaquetaria. Finalmente, cinco cirróticos (30 por ciento) mostraron datos altamente sugestivos de coagulación intravascular diseminada CID y en tres casos (17 por ciento) hallazgos compatibles con fibrinólisis primaria. En cuanto a las complicaciones hemorrágicas (47 por ciento) y a la mortalidad (23 por ciento), éstas se presentaron en enfermos con coagulopatía manifiesta. Conclusiones : la aparición de la coagulopatía en el cirrótico es frecuente y de origen multifactorial, que origina complicaciones hemorrágicas y que definitivamente ensombrece el pronóstico a muy corto plazo.