Value of the Glasgow coma scale, age, and arterial blood pressure score for predicting the mortality of major trauma patients presenting to the emergency department.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to detect the mortality predictive power of new Glasgow coma scale, age, and arterial pressure (GAP) scoring system in major trauma patients admitted to the emergency department (ED).

METHODS: A total of 100 major trauma patients admitted to Uludağ University Faculty of Medicine ED who were 18 years of age or more were included in the study. In this prospective study, revised trauma score (RTS), injury severity score (ISS), trauma-related ISS (TRISS), Mechanism, GAP (MGAP) and GAP scores of the patients were calculated.

RESULTS: A significant positive correlation was established between ISS, TRISS, MGAP, and GAP in predicting in-hospital mortality (p<0.0001). Short-term (24 hours) and long-term (4-week) mortality prediction rates and area under the curve in receiver operating characteristics analysis were 0.727-0.680 for RTS, 0.863-0.816 for ISS, 0.945-0,911 for TRISS, 0.970-0.938 for MGAP, and 0.910-0.904 for GAP. All calculated trauma scoring systems revealed a significant mortality prediction power (p<0.001). GAP score was found statistically and significantly selective and sensitive in predicting both in-ED and in-hospital mortality (p=0.0001).

CONCLUSION: In major trauma patients, GAP score is an easily calculable system both in the field and at the time of admission in the EDs by providing emergency physicians with future decision-making schemes by means of mortality prediction of the patients.