title: The relation between persistent coma and brain ischemia after severe brain injury.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relation between brain ischemia and persistent vegetative state after severe traumatic brain injury.
  
  
  METHODS
  The 66 patients with severe brain injury were divided into two groups: The persistent coma group (coma duration ≥10 d) included 51 patients who had an admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of 5-8 and were unconscious for more than 10 d. There were 15 patients in the control group, their admission GCS was 5-8, and were unconscious for less than 10 d. The brain areas, including frontal, parietal, temporal, occipital lobes and thalamus, were measured by Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the first SPECT scan, multiple areas of cerebral ischemia were documented in all patients in both groups, whereas bilateral thalamic ischemia were presented in all patients in the persistent coma group and were absented in the control group. In the second SPECT scan taken during the period of analepsia, with an indication that unilateral thalamic ischemia were persisted in 28 of 41 patients in persistent coma group(28/41,68.29%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Persistent coma after severe brain injury is associated with bilateral thalamic ischemia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University , Changsha, Hunan Province , PR China.
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xi
authors.forename: Zhen Yan
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jin Fang
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jun Yu
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications*; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003128:Coma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D015600:Glasgow Coma Scale; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015898:Tomography Scanners, X-Ray Computed; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D055815:Young Adult