Thrombocytopenia predicts progressive hemorrhage after head trauma

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Microfluidics in Assessing Platelet Function
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Microfluidics in Assessing Platelet Function

Published on: November 8, 2024

Martin Engström1, Bertil Romner, Wilhelm Schalén

  • 1Department of Neuro Intensive Care, Lund University Hospital, Lund, Sweden. martin.engstrom@skane.se

Journal of Neurotrauma
|February 18, 2005
PubMed

Patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) often show progression of hemorrhagic injuries (PHI) after admission to the hospital. This progression is correlated with poor outcome. In this study, we have investigated if thrombocytopenia was a risk factor for PHI. The study was performed on patients admitted to the hospital with severe TBI during year 2000. In total, 50 patients were admitted with severe TBI. Twenty-seven out of these had complete platelet counts at admission and 24 hours thereafter and were included for further study. We found thrombocytopenia at admission to be a risk factor for PHI (p=0.008). We also found that the platelet count decreased more significantly during the first 24 h after injury in patients with PHI compared to patients without PHI (p=0.009). A trend towards longer periods of mechanical ventilation in patients with PHI compared to patients without PHI was identified. These findings support a causal relationship between thrombocytopenia and PHI. The findings provide a rationale for future studies of hemostatic agents in the treatment of TBI in order to minimise complications caused by PHI.

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