title: Association among duration of unconsciousness, Glasgow Coma Scale, and cranial computed tomography abnormalities in head-injured children.
abstract: The impact of head trauma leads to generation of forces that cause both the intracranial injuries and loss of consciousness. Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) and cranial CT scan are widely used to gauge the severity of head injury. Milder cranial impacts insufficient to cause intracranial injuries generally cause no or minimal loss of consciousness. Nevertheless, cases with contradictory findings are also seen. This study was undertaken to find out the association among the three above-stated variables. A knowledge of such an association can enable the attending clinician in prognosticating a cranial injury and selecting out those patients with mild head injuries who deserve closer observation. While a significant positive association was found between duration of unconsciousness and GCS, no signifficant association of either of these variables with CT scan findings was noted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Surgery, Safdarjang Hospital, West Kidwai Nagar, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: S K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Ratan
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Pandey
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ratan
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D015600:Glasgow Coma Scale; D006801:Humans; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D008297:Male; D011336:Probability; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014474:Unconsciousness / Q000175:diagnosis*