Intracranial epidural haematomas in elderly patients: observations in 14 patients

Up to now, extra-dural haematomas (EDH) in elderly patients have been known for their poor prognosis and few studies have focused on the particularity of EDH in the elderly. Most clinical studies relating to EDH have generally focused on its occurrence in children and the middle-aged, grouping people of over 50 and 60 years together as the elderly. The purpose of this paper is to present a series of EDH cases in the elderly.

500 EDH patients (of all ages) were admitted to our Department from January 1990 to December 2003 and this is a retrospective study of 14 of those patients who were aged 70 years and over.

The study consists of 8 women and 6 men with an average age of 74 years. A high incidence of disease predisposes elderly to falls, which are the most frequent cause of head trauma. The elderly are less likely to manifest signs or symptoms of increased intracranial pressure due to cerebral atrophy, and almost all haematomas occurred in the parietal area. Post-operative results were satisfactory and only one death was recorded.

This study shows that the elderly, presenting EDH after a fall, have a better prognosis than is often feared.