[Head injuries in children--clinical characteristics as prognostic factors].
An unselected series of 200 consecutive cases of major head trauma in children aged 6 months to 16 years, seen during 4 years, was studied. Injuries were due to road accidents (40%), falls (30.5%) and other causes (29.5%), and were assessed clinically and by cranial CT. On admission the Glasgow Coma Score ranged from 4.72-11.65 and in addition to pupillary responses and brain stem reflexes, was a significant predictor of outcome. Brain edema, midline shift, intracranial hemorrhage and also hyperglycemia, hypokalemia and coagulopathy, were associated with poor outcome. While 17% died, 53% were discharged in good functional condition. Early identification of clinical features related to prognosis can help the caring team provide maximal support for patient and family.
Paret
G
G
Dept. of Pediatric Intensive Care, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer.
Ben Abraham
R
R
Berman
S
S
Vardi
A
A
Harel
R
R
Manisterski
Y
Y
Barzilay
Z
Z
D000058:Accidental Falls; D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000293:Adolescent; D001929:Brain Edema; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D015600:Glasgow Coma Scale; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome