The benefit of routine thoracic, abdominal, and pelvic computed tomography to evaluate trauma patients with closed head injuries.

Background: The evaluation of multitrauma patients for blunt truncal injuries remains open for debate. We sought to evaluate the role of routine computed tomography (CT) of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis as a screening tool for patients already undergoing cranial CT studies.

Methods: Charts of blunt trauma patients admitted from June 2000 to June 2001 were reviewed for demographics, Glascow Coma Scale (GCS), physical and radiological findings, and length of stay.