The impact of intracranial pressure monitoring on mortality after severe traumatic brain injury.

BACKGROUND: The effect of intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring on mortality after severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI) remains unclear. We hypothesized that ICP monitoring would not be associated with improved survival in patients with sTBI.

METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on sTBI patients, defined as admission Glasgow Coma Scale score of 8 or less with intracranial hemorrhage. Patients who underwent ICP monitoring were compared with patients who did not. The primary outcome measure was inhospital mortality.

RESULTS: Of 123 sTBI patients meeting inclusion criteria, 40 (32.5%) underwent ICP monitoring. On bivariate and multivariate regression analyses, ICP monitoring was associated with decreased mortality (odds ratio = .32, 95% confidence interval = .10 to .99, P = .049). This finding persisted on propensity-adjusted analysis.

CONCLUSIONS: ICP monitoring is associated with improved survival in adult patients with sTBI. In addition, significant variability exists in the use of ICP monitoring among patients with sTBI.