Rapid Discharge After Interfacility Transfer for Mild Traumatic Intracranial Hemorrhage: Frequency and Associated Factors

Introduction: Traumatic intracranial hemorrhage (TIH), brain injury with radiographic hemorrhage, is a common emergency department (ED) presentation, and encompasses a wide range of clinical syndromes. Patients with moderate and severe neurotrauma (Glasgow Coma Scale [GCS]< 13) with intracranial hemorrhage require care at a trauma center with neurosurgical capabilities. However, many patients with mild traumatic intracranial hemorrhage (mTIH), defined as radiographic bleeding and GCS ≥ 13, do not require operative intervention or intensive care unit monitoring, but are still routinely transferred to tertiary care centers. We hypothesized that a significant proportion of patients are managed non-operatively and are discharged within 24 hours of admission.Methods: This was a retrospective, observational study of consecutive patients age ≥ 16 years, GCS ≥ 13 who were transferred to an urban, medical school-affiliated,...
Source: Western Journal of Emergency Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Source Type: research