Optimising the management of severe Traumatic Brain Injury in the military maritime environment

2014 ◽  
Vol 100 (3) ◽  
pp. 293-300
Author(s):  
IA Edgar ◽  
G Hadjipavlou ◽  
JE Smith
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Healthcare Systems ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Eye Protection ◽  
Alternative Approaches ◽  
The Military ◽  
Primary Injury ◽  
Maritime Environment

AbstractSevere Traumatic Brain Injury (sTBI) is a devastating cause of morbidity and mortality, especially among those aged less than 45 years. Advances in clinical practice continue to focus on preventing primary injury through developing ballistic head and eye protection, and through minimising secondary brain injury (secondary prevention).Managing sTBI is challenging in well-developed, well-resourced healthcare systems. Achieving management aims in the military maritime environment poses even greater challenges.Strategies for the management of sTBI in the maritime environment should be in keeping with current best evidence. Provision of specialist interventions for sTBI in military maritime environments may require alternative approaches matched to the skills of the staff and environmental restrictions.

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Martin ◽  
Lara Zimmermann ◽  
Kee D. Kim ◽  
Marike Zwienenberg ◽  
Kiarash Shahlaie
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Pressure ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Neurocritical Care ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Oxygenation ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Penetrating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury are best treated with a multidisciplinary, evidence-based, protocol-directed approach, which has been shown to decrease mortality and improve functional outcomes. Therapy is directed at the prevention of secondary brain injury through optimizing cerebral blood flow and the delivery of metabolic fuel (ie, oxygen and glucose). This is accomplished through the measurement and treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), the strict avoidance of hypotension and hypoxemia, and in some instances, surgical management. The treatment of elevated ICP is approached in a protocolized, tiered manner, with escalation of care occurring in the setting of refractory intracranial hypertension, culminating in either decompressive surgery or barbiturate coma. With such an approach, the rates of mortality secondary to traumatic brain injury are declining despite an increasing incidence of traumatic brain injury. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables and 69 reference Key Words: blast traumatic brain injury, brain oxygenation, cerebral perfusion pressure, decompressive craniectomy, hyperosmolar therapy, intracranial pressure, neurocritical care, penetrating traumatic brain injury, severe traumatic brain injury

The Role of Free Radicals in Traumatic Brain Injury

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen M. O’Connell ◽  
Marguerite T. Littleton-Kearney
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Free Radicals ◽  
Free Radical ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Secondary Injury ◽  
The Military

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant cause of death and disability in both the civilian and the military populations. The primary impact causes initial tissue damage, which initiates biochemical cascades, known as secondary injury, that expand the damage. Free radicals are implicated as major contributors to the secondary injury. Our review of recent rodent and human research reveals the prominent role of the free radicals superoxide anion, nitric oxide, and peroxynitrite in secondary brain injury. Much of our current knowledge is based on rodent studies, and the authors identified a gap in the translation of findings from rodent to human TBI. Rodent models are an effective method for elucidating specific mechanisms of free radical-induced injury at the cellular level in a well-controlled environment. However, human TBI does not occur in a vacuum, and variables controlled in the laboratory may affect the injury progression. Additionally, multiple experimental TBI models are accepted in rodent research, and no one model fully reproduces the heterogeneous injury seen in humans. Free radical levels are measured indirectly in human studies based on assumptions from the findings from rodent studies that use direct free radical measurements. Further study in humans should be directed toward large samples to validate the findings in rodent studies. Data obtained from these studies may lead to more targeted treatment to interrupt the secondary injury cascades.

Therapeutic Moderate Hypothermia for Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

1997 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 239-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald W. Marion
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Moderate Hypothermia ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Neurological Outcomes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Coagulation Abnormalities ◽  
Laboratory Investigations ◽  
Fluid Levels

Use of therapeutic hypothermia to treat patients with severe traumatic brain injury was described more than 50 years ago. Unexpected improvement in some of these patients was attributed to hypothermia, but none of the early studies systematically evaluated the efficacy of hypothermia, and many patients were thought to have been harmed by the treatment, particularly when cooled below 30°C or when cooled for longer than 48 hours. Recent investigations have found that therapeutic moderate hypothermia (32–34°C) for relatively brief durations can improve histological and behavioral outcome following experimental brain injury. Cooling to this degree and duration has not been implicated as a cause for the cardiac arrhythmias, coagulation abnormalities, or infections attributed to hypothermia in the earlier studies. These laboratory investigations also defined several neurochemical mechanisms through which hypothermia may limit secondary brain injury and brain swelling. Four clinical trials of therapeutic moderate hypothermia were completed during the past three years; each detected a beneficial effect from cooling patients with severe traumatic brain injury to 32 to 34°C for up to 48 hours. In the largest of these studies, therapeutic moderate hypothermia was shown to cause a significant improvement in neurological outcomes 3, 6, and 12 months after injury for those patients with an initial Glasgow Coma Scale score of 5 to 7. The improvement in outcome for these patients was associated with a hypothermia-induced reduction of intracranial pressure and cerebrospinal fluid levels of interleukln-1β and glutamate.

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Martin ◽  
Lara Zimmermann ◽  
Kee D. Kim ◽  
Marike Zwienenberg ◽  
Kiarash Shahlaie
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Pressure ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Neurocritical Care ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Oxygenation ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Penetrating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury are best treated with a multidisciplinary, evidence-based, protocol-directed approach, which has been shown to decrease mortality and improve functional outcomes. Therapy is directed at the prevention of secondary brain injury through optimizing cerebral blood flow and the delivery of metabolic fuel (ie, oxygen and glucose). This is accomplished through the measurement and treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), the strict avoidance of hypotension and hypoxemia, and in some instances, surgical management. The treatment of elevated ICP is approached in a protocolized, tiered manner, with escalation of care occurring in the setting of refractory intracranial hypertension, culminating in either decompressive surgery or barbiturate coma. With such an approach, the rates of mortality secondary to traumatic brain injury are declining despite an increasing incidence of traumatic brain injury. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables and 69 reference Key Words: blast traumatic brain injury, brain oxygenation, cerebral perfusion pressure, decompressive craniectomy, hyperosmolar therapy, intracranial pressure, neurocritical care, penetrating traumatic brain injury, severe traumatic brain injury

scholarly journals Pathophysiology of severe traumatic brain injury and management of intracranial hypertension

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 62-71
Author(s):  
Raimondas Juškys ◽  
Vaiva Hendrixson
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Hypertension ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Current Treatment ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Treatment Protocols ◽  
Improved Outcomes ◽  
The Brain

It is well recognized that severe traumatic brain injury causes major health and socioeconomic burdens for patients their families and society itself. Over the past decade, understanding of secondary brain injury processes has increased tremendously, permitting implementation of new neurocritical methods of care that substantially contribute to improved outcomes of such patients. The main objective of current treatment protocols is to optimize different physiological measurements that prevent secondary insults and reinforce the ability of the brain to heal. The aim of this literature review is to uncover the pathophysiological mechanisms of severe traumatic brain injury and their interrelationship, including cerebral metabolic crisis, disturbances of blood flow to the brain and development of edema, putting emphasis on intracranial hypertension and its current management options.

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Martin ◽  
Lara Zimmermann ◽  
Kee D. Kim ◽  
Marike Zwienenberg ◽  
Kiarash Shahlaie
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Pressure ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Neurocritical Care ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Oxygenation ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Penetrating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury are best treated with a multidisciplinary, evidence-based, protocol-directed approach, which has been shown to decrease mortality and improve functional outcomes. Therapy is directed at the prevention of secondary brain injury through optimizing cerebral blood flow and the delivery of metabolic fuel (ie, oxygen and glucose). This is accomplished through the measurement and treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), the strict avoidance of hypotension and hypoxemia, and in some instances, surgical management. The treatment of elevated ICP is approached in a protocolized, tiered manner, with escalation of care occurring in the setting of refractory intracranial hypertension, culminating in either decompressive surgery or barbiturate coma. With such an approach, the rates of mortality secondary to traumatic brain injury are declining despite an increasing incidence of traumatic brain injury. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables and 69 reference Key Words: blast traumatic brain injury, brain oxygenation, cerebral perfusion pressure, decompressive craniectomy, hyperosmolar therapy, intracranial pressure, neurocritical care, penetrating traumatic brain injury, severe traumatic brain injury

Response to intracranial hypertension treatment as a predictor of death in patients with severe traumatic brain injury

2011 ◽  
Vol 114 (5) ◽  
pp. 1471-1478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arash Farahvar ◽  
Linda M. Gerber ◽  
Ya-Lin Chiu ◽  
Roger Härtl ◽  
Matteus Froelich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
New York State ◽  
Response To Treatment ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Improvement Program ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Lowering Therapy ◽  
Gcs Score

Object The normalization of increased intracranial pressure (ICP) in patients with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) is assumed to limit secondary brain injury and improve outcome. Despite evidence-based recommendations for monitoring and treatment of elevated ICP, there are few studies that show an association between response to ICP-directed therapeutic regimens and adjusted mortality rate. This study utilizes a large prospective database to examine the effect of response to ICP-lowering therapy on risk of death within the first 2 weeks of injury in patients who sustained TBI and are older than 16 years. Methods The current study is based on 1426 patients with severe TBI (Glasgow Coma Scale [GCS] score < 9) of whom 388 were treated for elevated ICP (> 25 mm Hg) between 2000 and 2008 at 22 trauma centers enrolled in a New York State quality improvement program. This prospectively collected database also contains information including age, admission GCS score, pupillary status, CT scanning parameters, and hypotension, which are all known early prognostic indicators of death. Treatment of elevated ICP consisted of administration of mannitol, hypertonic saline, barbiturates, and/or drainage of CSF or decompressive craniectomy. The factors predicting ICP response to treatment and predicting death at 2 weeks were evaluated using logistic regression analyses. Results Increasing age and fewer hours of elevated ICP on Day 1 were found to be significant predictors (p = 0.001 and 0.0003, respectively) of a positive response to treatment. Response to ICP-lowering therapy (p = 0.03), younger age (p < 0.0001), fewer hours of elevated ICP (p < 0.0001), and absence of arterial hypotension on Day 1 (p = 0.001) significantly predicted reduced risk of death. Conclusions Patients who responded to ICP-lowering treatment had a 64% lower risk of death at 2 weeks than those who did not respond after adjusting for factors that independently predict risk of death.

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Martin ◽  
Lara Zimmermann ◽  
Kee D. Kim ◽  
Marike Zwienenberg ◽  
Kiarash Shahlaie
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Pressure ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Neurocritical Care ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Oxygenation ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Penetrating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury are best treated with a multidisciplinary, evidence-based, protocol-directed approach, which has been shown to decrease mortality and improve functional outcomes. Therapy is directed at the prevention of secondary brain injury through optimizing cerebral blood flow and the delivery of metabolic fuel (ie, oxygen and glucose). This is accomplished through the measurement and treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), the strict avoidance of hypotension and hypoxemia, and in some instances, surgical management. The treatment of elevated ICP is approached in a protocolized, tiered manner, with escalation of care occurring in the setting of refractory intracranial hypertension, culminating in either decompressive surgery or barbiturate coma. With such an approach, the rates of mortality secondary to traumatic brain injury are declining despite an increasing incidence of traumatic brain injury. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables and 69 reference Key Words: blast traumatic brain injury, brain oxygenation, cerebral perfusion pressure, decompressive craniectomy, hyperosmolar therapy, intracranial pressure, neurocritical care, penetrating traumatic brain injury, severe traumatic brain injury

scholarly journals Coagulation disorder in moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 22-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajit Shrestha ◽  
Ramesh Man Joshi ◽  
Upendra P. Devkota
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injuries ◽  
International Normalized Ratio ◽  
Traumatic Brain Injuries ◽  
Coagulation Disorder ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Multivariate Statistical ◽  
Moderate Traumatic Brain Injury

Background: Significant proportions of patients presenting with moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries are diagnosed as having coagulation disorder and subsequent secondary brain injury. We evaluated the incidence of coagulopathy in patient with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury in this study.Methods: A prospective study of 100 patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury was carried out over a period of 2 years. Platelet count (PC), Bleeding time (BT), Clotting time (CT), Prothrombin time (PT), International Normalized ratio (INR), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and Fibrin degradation product (FDP) were measured at the time of admission and 12 hourly for 7 days. Daily D-dimer evaluation for DIC was performed in those who had abnormal value in any one of these parameters. Coagulopathy was classified as collectively 3 abnormal parameters.Results: Among the 100 patients, 43% had severe and 57% had moderate traumatic brain injury. Coagulopathy was detected in 63% of total patients; 76.7 % (33/43) among severe traumatic brain injury and 52.7 % (30/57) among moderate (p 0.013). Multivariate statistical analysis showed deranged FDP as a significant individual predictor of coagulopathy among others (p < 0.001, Odds ratio 166.25; 95% confidence interval 31.7 + 869.7).Conclusion: Coagulopathy is common in patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Evaluation of FDP can significantly predict coagulopathy in traumatic brain injury patients.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ajms.v6i3.10730 Asian Journal of Medical Sciences Vol.6(3) 2015 22-25

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Martin ◽  
Lara Zimmermann ◽  
Kee D. Kim ◽  
Marike Zwienenberg ◽  
Kiarash Shahlaie
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Intracranial Pressure ◽  
Severe Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Neurocritical Care ◽  
Secondary Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Oxygenation ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Penetrating Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Patients with severe traumatic brain injury are best treated with a multidisciplinary, evidence-based, protocol-directed approach, which has been shown to decrease mortality and improve functional outcomes. Therapy is directed at the prevention of secondary brain injury through optimizing cerebral blood flow and the delivery of metabolic fuel (ie, oxygen and glucose). This is accomplished through the measurement and treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), the strict avoidance of hypotension and hypoxemia, and in some instances, surgical management. The treatment of elevated ICP is approached in a protocolized, tiered manner, with escalation of care occurring in the setting of refractory intracranial hypertension, culminating in either decompressive surgery or barbiturate coma. With such an approach, the rates of mortality secondary to traumatic brain injury are declining despite an increasing incidence of traumatic brain injury. This review contains 3 figures, 5 tables and 69 reference Key Words: blast traumatic brain injury, brain oxygenation, cerebral perfusion pressure, decompressive craniectomy, hyperosmolar therapy, intracranial pressure, neurocritical care, penetrating traumatic brain injury, severe traumatic brain injury

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