Incidence of extracranial injuries in fatal head injury patients.

The clinical notes of 148 patients who were admitted with head injuries and died were studied retrospectively and compared with the results of a postmortem examination. Risk factors predicting the presence of extracranial injuries were sought. Fourteen per cent of patients admitted with head injuries died. Two risk factors predicted the presence of extracranial injuries: 67% of the patients with an associated injury had been involved in a motor vehicle accident (MVA), compared with 32% of those with a head injury only. Shock was five times as common in the group with associated injuries than in those without. Associated injuries were present in 45% of patients, and 37% of these injuries were not diagnosed on admission. In 7% these injuries were the final cause of death. This study re-emphasises the fact that multi-organ trauma is common after MVA, and shock due to hypovolaemia is an unusual complication of head injury. Searching for associated injuries is mandatory in the head-injured patient. Since clinical examination is inaccurate, special investigations, such as peritoneal lavage or computed tomography, should be utilised for this purpose.

The diagnosis of abdominal injuries in comatose patients.

The clinical course of 95 comatose trauma patients was prospectively evaluated. The role of clinical findings and diagnostic peritoneal lavage (DPL) combined with computed tomography (CT) were assessed in the diagnosis of abdominal injuries. Seven per cent of the patients were comatose due to hypoperfusion, and did not have a primary brain injury. Of the remaining 88 patients, 28% had an associated abdominal injury. Hypotension predicted an associated abdominal injury with an accuracy of 72%, and a haematocrit less than 30% had an accuracy of 82%. Clinical examination was 50% accurate. DPL was 93% accurate, with a false-positive rate of 10%. No abdominal injuries were present in the group in whom the lavage results were negative, while no unnecessary laparotomies were performed in the group with a 4+ or 5+ positive DPL (calorimetric method). In the group with 1+, 2+ and 3+ positive DPL, 3/15 laparotomies (12%) were done for minor abdominal injuries. Minimising unnecessary laparotomies was achieved by utilising CT to determine the nature and extent of the injury. By using DPL as a screening test, and CT to quantify the injury, unnecessary operations can be avoided, and all injuries can still be diagnosed.