Clinical Characteristics of Traumatic Epidural Hematoma: A Comparison between Children and Adults

ABSTRACT

Seventy-nine children and 433 adults were treated for epidural hematoma at our hospital during the last 10 years. The authors have tried to compare the various clinical characteristics and significant prognostic factors of epidural hematoma in children and adults. The result confirmed that children with traumatic epidural hematoma are less likely to have direct relationship with various causes of head trauma, associated extracranial injuries, skull fractures, temporal region hematomas, and immediate surgeries, but tend to have high preoperative GCS scores, prompt pupil responses, require only conservative treatments, have short durations of coma, and have good outcome. The cause of injury, amount of hematoma and focus of bleeding on surgery are found to be significant prognostic factors in adults, but are not in children. In cases with same scores of preoperative Glasgow Coma Scale(GCS) and durations of coma, very severe neurologic status(below 7 of GCS, both dilated fixed pupil) had a worse outcome in children as well as in adults without significant difference between them. The clinical index on preoperative GCS and pupillary response used when deciding the operation time were different in children compared to adults. Operations performed in delayed fashion in children under close observation for changes in GCS and pupillary response showed good outcome. However, adults require operations as early as possible because of possible rapid progression.