Incidence of intra-abdominal injuries in hemodynamically stable blunt trauma patients with a normal computed tomography scan admitted to the emergency department.
BMC Emerg Med
; 24(1): 103, 2024 Jun 21.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38902603
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
Blunt abdominal trauma is a common cause of emergency department admission. Computed tomography (CT) scanning is the gold standard method for identifying intra-abdominal injuries in patients experiencing blunt trauma, especially those with high-energy trauma. Although the diagnostic accuracy of this imaging technique is very high, patient admission and prolonged observation protocols are still common practices worldwide. We aimed to evaluate the incidence of intra-abdominal injury in hemodynamically stable patients with high-energy blunt trauma and a normal abdominal CT scan at a Level-1 Trauma Center in Colombia, South America, to assess the relevance of a prolonged observation period.METHODS:
We performed a retrospective study of patients admitted to the emergency department for blunt trauma between 2021 and 2022. All consecutive patients with high-energy mechanisms of trauma and a normal CT scan at admission were included. Our primary outcomes were the incidence of intra-abdominal injury identified during a 24-hour observation period or hospital stay, ICU admission, and death.RESULTS:
We included 480 patients who met the inclusion criteria. The median age was 33 (IQR 25.5, 47), and 74.2% were male. The most common mechanisms of injury were motor vehicle accidents (64.2%), falls from height (26%), and falls from bikes (3.1%). A total of 99.2% of patients had a Revised Trauma Score of 8. Only 1 patient (0.2%) (95% CI 0.01-1.16) presented with an abdominal injury during the observation period. No ICU admissions or deaths were reported.CONCLUSION:
The incidence of intra-abdominal injury in patients with hemodynamically stable blunt trauma and a negative abdominal CT scan is extremely low, and prolonged observation may not be justified in these patients.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Heridas no Penetrantes
/
Tomografía Computarizada por Rayos X
/
Servicio de Urgencia en Hospital
/
Traumatismos Abdominales
Límite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
País/Región como asunto:
America do sul
/
Colombia
Idioma:
En
Revista:
BMC Emerg Med
Asunto de la revista:
MEDICINA DE EMERGENCIA
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Colombia
Pais de publicación:
Reino Unido