A pediatric specific shock index in combination with GMS identifies children with life threatening or severe

Shannon N Acker1, James T Ross2, David A Partrick3

  • 1Department of Pediatric Surgery, Children's Hospital Colorado, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 12631 E 17th Ave, C302, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA. shannon.acker@ucdenver.edu.

Insights

The shock index, pediatric age adjusted (SIPA) or abnormal Glasgow Coma Scale motor score (GMS) better identifies severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) in children than hypotension alone. This combination offers higher sensitivity for detecting severe TBI in pediatric blunt trauma cases.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric emergency medicine
  • Trauma surgery
  • Neurocritical care

Background:

  • The shock index, pediatric age adjusted (SIPA) has previously shown efficacy in identifying severely blunt injured children.
  • Accurate identification of severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) in pediatric blunt trauma is crucial for timely intervention and improved outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate if SIPA is more accurate than hypotension in identifying severe TBI in children.
  • To compare the sensitivity of SIPA, hypotension, abnormal GCS motor score (GMS), and their combinations in identifying severe pediatric TBI.

Main Methods:

  • Subset analysis of children aged 4-16 years with blunt trauma and Injury Severity Score ≥15.
  • Evaluation of four markers: hypotension, elevated SIPA, abnormal GMS, and elevated SIPA or abnormal GMS.
  • Comparison of marker sensitivity in identifying severely brain-injured children.

Main Results:

  • 392 children were analyzed. Hypotension was present in 6%, elevated SIPA in 27%, abnormal GMS in 44%, and elevated SIPA or abnormal GMS in 53%.
  • All evaluated markers identified severely injured children with TBI.
  • The combination of elevated SIPA or abnormal GMS demonstrated higher sensitivity in identifying complications compared to other markers.

Conclusions:

  • Elevated SIPA or abnormal GMS is effective in identifying severely brain-injured children with TBI.
  • The combined marker (SIPA or abnormal GMS) offers superior sensitivity for detecting severe TBI in pediatric blunt trauma patients.
Abstract