The Classification and Risk Factors of Mild Head Injury

Aim: Evaluate the current definition of mild head injury and judge if GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale) 13 is a good critical value.
Methods: A retrospective study of 4271 patients with mild head injury (GCS score 13-15) during a 2-year period. Their clinical manifestations were analyzed statistically to find the risk factors of intracranial lesions, neurosurgical intervention and poor outcome.
Results: 970 (22.7%) patients had intracranial lesions proven by computed tomography (CT) of the head, 334 (7.8%) needed neurosurgical intervention and 237(5.5%) had an unfavorable outcome. Eight risk factors were found: male, GCS score lower than 15, initial loss of consciousness, post-traumatic amnesia, seizures, focal signs, presence of skull fractures, and old age (°Ÿ65).
Conclusion: We suggest that mild head injury is defined as a GCS score of 15 without acute radiographic abnormalities, whereas high-risk mild head injury is defined as a GCS score of 13 or 14, or a GCS score of 15 with acute radiographic abnormalities.