The Archbishop and the neurosurgeon.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to B Jennett.
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By using measurements of cerebral blood flow and internal carotid artery pressure it is possible to select patients in whom carotid ligation can be performed with a very low risk of post-operative cerebral ischaemia. A study has been carried out in 100 patients comparing this method with clinical predictions of the type used in aneurysm surgery based on age of the patient, arterial hypertension, time from latest subarachnoid haemorrhage, and neurological status on a modified Botterell scale. These clinical factors were found to be of little value in predicting which patients would and would not develop cerebral ischaemia after carotid occlusion.
Methods for assessing early characteristics and late outcome after severe head injury have been devised and applied to 700 cases in three countries (Scotland, Netherlands, and USA). There was a close similarity between the initial features of patients in the three series; in spite of differences on organisation of care and in details of management , the mortality was exactly the same in each country. This data bank of cases (which is still being enlarged) can be used for predicting outcome in new cases, and for setting up trials of management.
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Clinical data available in the first few days after severe head injury have been collected prospectively on 600 patients from Glasgow and the Netherlands and stored on computer; the patients in the two countries were similar in initial severity and in their outcome on a defined scale at 6 months. Calculated predictions of outcome were made in 200 randomly selected cases, using Bayesian statistics to compare the data from each patient with those from the 400 remaining cases whose outcome was known. Confident predictions (greater than 0-97 probability) were made in 44% of cases within the first 24 hours of coma, and in 52-61% when data up to 3 days were available. The higher confidence-rate occurred when prediction was limited to two outcomes (death or survival). Comparison of predicted with actual outcomes showed that 96-98% of confident predictions were correct. More logical clinical decisions should be possible when these predictions are available.
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The Glasgow Coma Scale, based upon eye opening, verbal and motor responses has proved a practical and consistent means of monitoring the state of head injured patients. Observations made in the early stages after injury define the depth and duration of coma and, when combined with clinical features such as a patient's age and brain stem function, have been used to predict outcome. Series of cases in comparable depths of coma in Glasgow and the Netherlands showed remarkably similar outcomes at 3 months. Based upon observations made in the first 24 hours of coma after injury, data from 255 previous cases reliably predicted outcome in the majority of 92 new patients. The exceptions were patients with potential to recover who later developed complications: no patient did significantly better than predicted.
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Ranking of head injuries by severity is an essential part of clinical management, of prognosis, of treatment trials, and of legal assessment for compensation. Various methods of assessing severity are reviewed. No one scale is appropriate for all types of injury, or in all circumstances. A check list is provided which should enable every injury to be assessed; its use would facilitate comparison between individual cases of head injury, and between reports from different studies.
A carbonic anhydrase inhibitor (UK-12,130) was shown to increase cerebral blood flow in mildly demented geriatric patients. Oral administration caused a significant increase in blood flow at two different dose levels; this persisted for at least six weeks, which was the duration of the longest study. There was no consistent improvement in mentation during treatment. Blood blow was measured by the washout of 133Xe after inhalation of this inert gas.
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