title: Post-traumatic mutism in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the pathological mechanism of post-traumatic mutism (PTM) in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective study of 16 children who suffered from severe head injury and developed PTM.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Post-traumatic coma lasted from 2-72 days, average 15.5 days; while post-traumatic mutism lasted from 2-56 days, average 11.94 days. The correlation between duration of coma and mutism was significant (p < 0.001). SPECT found that multiple persistent ischaemic brain regions occurred in all patients; the mean number of regions was 5.6. The patients were sub-divided into three groups based on the number of ischaemic regions: group 1, < or = 4; group 2, 5 approximately 6; group 3, > or = 7. The duration of mutism did not differ significantly between groups 1 and 2, but the difference between group 3 and the other two groups combined was significant (p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most PTM occurred in patients with diffuse brain injury. The duration of mutism was related to the number of ischaemic brain regions and the duration of post-traumatic coma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan Province, PR China.
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Jian
authors.forename: Wang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Junyu
authors.forename: Liu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jinfang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D020207:Coma, Post-Head Injury / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009155:Mutism / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed