Combined head and abdominal blunt trauma in the hemodynamically unstable patient: What takes priority?

Background: The management of hypotensive patients with severe combined head and abdominal trauma is challenging, regarding the need, timing, and sequence of craniotomy or laparotomy. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether rare situations requiring craniotomy prior to laparotomy can be identified on admission with simple clinical parameters. We hypothesized that hypotension is rarely associated with the need of a combined procedure, especially in patients with mildly depressed consciousness.

Methods: National Trauma Data Bank study, including adult blunt trauma patients with combined severe head (Abbreviated Injury Scale score, ≥ 3) and abdominal injury (Abbreviated Injury Scale score, ≥ 3). Data collection included demographic and clinical characteristics, laparotomy, and craniotomy within 24 hours of admission, types of intracranial pathologies, survival, and hospital stay. Multivariate regression analysis was used to determine factors predictive for the need of both operative procedures.

Results: Of 25,585 patients with severe combined head and abdominal trauma, 8,744 (34.2%) needed only laparotomy, 534 (2.1%) only craniotomy, and 394 (1.5%) required both procedures within 24 hours of admission. In the subgroup of 4,667 hypotensive patients, 2,421 (51.9%) underwent only laparotomy, 54 (1.2%) only craniotomy, and 79 (1.7%) both procedures within 24 hours of admission. Only 5 (0.7%) of 711 hypotensive patients with Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score above 8 who required a laparotomy also needed a craniotomy. Among clinical parameters available on patient's arrival, GCS score of 7 to 8 was independently associated with the highest need for craniotomy in hypotensive patients requiring laparotomy (odds ratio, 7.94; p = 0.004).

Conclusion: The need for craniotomy in patients with severe combined head and abdominal injury requiring exploratory laparotomy is very low. In hypotensive patients requiring laparotomy, GCS score of 7 to 8 was an independent predictor of the need for craniotomy. In hemodynamically unstable patients with a GCS score greater than 8, it may be safer to proceed with a laparotomy first and address the head with a computed tomography scan at a later stage.

Level Of Evidence: Therapeutic, Level IV.