[Fibrinolytic activity of the human brain after contusive injuries]

Histochemical and biochemical evaluation of cerebral tissue fibrinolysis following cranioencephalic trauma was studied in 20 cases seen at necropsy, with varying periods of survival after injury. Fibrinolysis was mainly located at the vasal intima and was very intense in areas rich in vascularised connective tissue, such as the dura mater. Its activity diminished soon after injury to reach minimum values during the first day. Thereafter it remained at very low levels in sites with gross lesions, whereas it returned to nearly normal values elsewhere on the 2nd or 3rd day. Attention is drawn to the territorial character of this pattern. Extension of these results to the fields of diagnosis and treatment, however, is considered premature.