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Monday, September 21, 2009

Positive Serum Ethanol Level and Mortality in Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury
Arch Surg. 2009;144(9):865-871.

Hypothesis Ethanol exposure is associated with decreased mortality in patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury.

A total of 38 019 patients with severe traumatic brain injuries were evaluated. Thirty-eight percent tested positive for ethanol. Ethanol-positive patients were younger (mean [SD], 37.7 [15.1] vs 44.1 [22.0] years, had a lower Injury Severity Score (22.3 [10.0] vs 23.0 [10.3], and a lower Glasgow Coma Scale score (10.0 [5.1] vs 11.0 [4.9], compared with their ethanol-negative counterparts. After logistic regression analysis, ethanol was associated with reduced mortality and higher complications .

Serum ethanol is independently associated with decreased mortality in patients with moderate to severe head injuries. Additional research is warranted to investigate the potential therapeutic implications of this association.


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