Role of the Measurement of Cerebral Blood Flow in the Management of Patients with Traumatic Subdural Hygroma

ABSTRACT

The finding of a traumatic subdural hygroma(SDHy) raises the question of whether to remove it surgically or not, because the management is still controversial. There has been noting but CT scan and clinical findings for neurosurgeons to decide surgical management, and most of neurosurgeons are still dependent upon their own experiences to decide the way of management for SDHy. In the present study, the authors investigated the changes of cerebral blood flow in 10 patients with SDHy by SPECT, and their relationships with the clinical findings and the results of 6-months postinjury. This study indicates that hypoperfusion of the frontal cortex, examined within a week postinjury, is a good indication for surgical management, and improvement of hypoperfusion at the follow-up SPECT, 1 month later, can predict better prognosis particularly in the cases of young age without associated brain injuries.