Furosemide and human head injury.
Intracranial pressure was maintained below 20 torr with the administration of intravenous furosemide (Lasix, Hoechst-Roussel) in addition to routine pharmacologic and mechanical procedures in 15 severely head-injured patients undergoing surgery for intracranial hematomas. Control of intracranial pressure in these patients was attributed to diuresis, carbonic anhydrase inhibition, decreased cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) production, and decreased central venous pressure. Furosemide may also improve cerebral microcirculation during continued administration at specific intervals by the inhibition of astroglial swelling.