[Disturbed pulmonary gas exchange in patients with cerebral trauma (author's transl)]

In a prospective study on 78 patients the influence of the severity of an isolated head injury on the pulmonary gas exchange has been examined. Our results show that with increasing severity of the isolated cerebral trauma the quotient A -- aDO2/PAO2 increases as well (P less than 0.001). Patients with comparable degrees of head injury but nearly unchanged pulmonary function have a greater chance to survive (P less than 0.05), though with neurological defects, than patients with an additional disturbed pulmonary gas exchange. The overall survival rate amounts to 53.8 per cent.